Don't you miss her?
by ochazuke
Summary: May is missing from the Contest scenario and Drew wonders what happened to his rival. Contestshipping, Shuuharu, May/Drew (and a very vague hint of Pokeshipping).
1. Chapter 1: Unsolved issues

**[Don't you miss her?]**

* * *

**Chapter one - Unsolved issues**

* * *

Contests are my everyday challenge to prove my worth and skills under the spotlights. Winning the competition requires a fascinating teamwork between human and pokemon, strong sense of aesthetics, quick reflexes and, of course, lots of_ discipline_. I feel very proud of myself when I get a new ribbon in my hands: after all, that means I'm good... Really good.

Vanity much?

I'm aware I'm a very proud guy - yet no one can criticize me: do you have any idea how hard coordinators need to work to have that elusive golden trophy in their hands? Since I was ten I dedicate my whole life to reach the title of Top Coordinator of all times; I spend a lot of time studying tons of complicated stuff by myself, battling obnoxious trainers, using all my savings on pokemon supplies, rehearsing appeals until the sunrise of the next day...

I could be playing or traveling with other kids in the city, I could have more friends, yes, I could be running Contests just for a hobby. But what I want the most is to achieve that mythical title. I want to win every single ribbon and trophy of Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh... I don't mind "not having fun with the small things about life" - nothing beats the pleasure of being covered by valuable praising and honors.

I want to be recognized as a godly coordinator. That's all.

I'm glad my team seek the same dream as I do - Roserade, Masquerain, Flygon... The amazing pokemon in my team give their blood and tears to show the world how magnificent and jaw-dropping they are. They might not be as famous as the League battling pokemon - but they are aware even those creatures respect and admire their grace and beauty.

As you can see, the quest for perfection might be hard... but it is definitely worth it.

I got my first Ribbon Cup last year: Sinnoh Grand Festival, a triumphal victory against Solidad. It was an amazing duel of agility and wits - Slowbro and Lapras against Roserade and Flygon. A battle with attacks from all elements and properties: violent water blasts, hypnotizing psychic waves, rain of toxic rose petals... We did our best. No one knew who was going to win until the timer went out and the virtual score displayed a picture of myself and the GF Cup.

"_And the winner is... Drew from LaRousse City! Drew is the new Top Coordinator of Sinnoh!_"

I... I finally did it. It was a unique and special moment for me: the hard spotlights flashing all over my body, Marian announcing the final results of the battle, colorful and bright scraps of paper falling from the skies as if they were the crumbling pieces of an unbeatable and immovable wall...

I mean, Solidad was always my friend but, above all, she was one of my greatest challenges in my career as a coordinator. Winning a fair battle against her in the finals obviously meant a lot to me: I finally was able to shatter the limit barrier and cross the path to new and higher levels. Yeah, those pieces of colorful shred paper were pretty much the symbolic transcription of what was going on inside me in that exact moment. Subtle yet very meaningful to me.

Drew, Top Coordinator from Sinnoh... One step closer to my dream!

Sol smiled and nodded to me in solemnity - thought we had never talked about it before, she knew how I always wanted to prove myself and overcome my unspoken fear of losing to her.

We congratulated each other with a strong and warm handshake and headed to the special winner's podium. It was so high I could see everybody on the crowd cheering, screaming and clapping for me - at that moment, all the attention of the Contest Hall was focused on me.

I saw Brianna and tons of girls swooning over me. I got a standing ovation from all the judges. I noticed Harley raging HARD - he was biting his own hat... I was feeling like the king of the top of the hill, nothing could stop my overdeveloped ego from exploding in sheer satisfaction... That trophy was heavy but it felt just as light as a plume in my arms.

Call me self-centered jerk, I don't care. That's one of the best feelings in the whole universe.

It was all perfect until...

Well, later at night we had those traditional end of tournament dinner. However, just like all the previous times, I didn't really want to join that massively crowded party. To be honest, I love being admired but I hate being the social guy. Imagine the following script:

* * *

[Fangirl squad: It's Drew! Oh my, please let me take a picture with you! Let me touch your hair! Please let me harass you! I love you so much, you're the best!]

[Drew: Thank you?]

[Journalist: Could you please tell us about your past and your current personal life? Is that true you're dating the Princess of Sinnoh Dawn? Do you like roses because you identify yourself as a feminine coordinator? Can I touch your hair?]

[Drew: Uhhh, I beg your pardon? I have no idea of what you're talking ab—]

[Harley: Drewie is Harley's true BFF! Guises, envy me, watch me glomp your hero and touch his hair! HUGGIEEE—]

[Drew: —I want my lawyer.]

* * *

See? Ugh... So awkward.

You've got the general idea. Yeah, my personal bubble limit happens to be much bigger than usual - and unfortunately I have zero tolerance to those who dare invading it without permission. That's why I love being on stage. No touching, no privacy invasion, freedom.

Anyway... Right when I left the Contest Hall, some wishful message echoed in the air before I crossed the street:

"I hope we meet again in the finals next year... I mean, the four of us."

Solidad was standing by Harley's side, watching me run away from the party. He didn't move a finger neither he said a single word - meanwhile, Sol walked closer to me, talking in a confident voice.

"I'm sure it will be a more challenging season, Drew. It will be fun. Either way, congratulations. You were amazing this season."

_Four of us_? The fourth one could be only...

"Don't worry," I said with a wicked grin plastered on my face. "I doubt she would have any chances against one of us this time. We were simply unstoppable this year, Sol."

"Oh, Drew."

Then she made that stupid thing that drives my crazy - Solidad giggled like a mother Noctowl and lightly tapped on my shoulder. To anyone from outside, that looked like a friendly touch between close buddies, although I was pretty sure that meant something along the lines of "you're such a cute boy!" - she never openly called me this but that look on her face...

"Eh? Aww, I wasn't talking about that... Don't you miss her too?"

Solidad is like an older sister to me, she is a caring and friendly person that respects me most of the times... I say "most of the times" because sometimes this annoying woman pesters me with questions like that one. She always phrase her lines in a way I can't accuse her of teasing me unfairly.

Ugh, it's really upsetting...

"You talk as if my feelings were any different as yours..." I smirked, flicking the tip of my hair bangs in a smug way. "Yeah, I guess everybody missed May a bit. Anyway, we will meet again in Kanto next year, right? May will be there then you can stop missing her so much."

"Really? She's going to Kanto too? How do you know that?"

It's depressing how adults enjoy mocking about my friendly rivalry with May, isn't it? Solidad and Harley desperately enjoy inserting romantic undertones to our relationship... Bickering about nothing in special? Signs of romance. Ironies and hair flipping? Denial of romance. Roses for Beautifly? Definitely a symbol of romance.

Ha-ha. According to them I must be the _most romantic guy in the whole universe_, seriously.

I mean, we are rivals. Okay, more than rivals, we are friends. Good fellows. We compete against each other and sometimes we manage to work or have fun together. But I don't know that much about her personal life - and I'm pretty sure I've never told her about mine as well. I don't think she cares about these details...

"How do I know? _Common sense_, what else?" I replied with a pinch of sarcasm in my words. "Aren't we all going to Kanto?"

"Oh." She frowned a bit for an instant then suddenly stopped teasing me. "I'm a bit worried about May because we haven't heard a word from her since past Grand Festival... And I thought the two of you were close friends—"

I don't know what exactly made the mood change so abruptly. Maybe I was too careless and sarcastic with my answer and that bothered Sol a bit...

"—I assumed you kept in touch with her but I guess I was wrong. Anyway, I hope she's okay."

Or perhaps she got angry because I hadn't shown much concern about May's absence.

"She must be fine, Solidad."

After all, nobody saw her in Sinnoh, not even once.

"I can't believe you didn't go after her, Drew."

I had never heard Solidad talking to me like that. She would always tease or imply her opinion with witty questions - but never give a straight and bitter remark about my behavior and choices. At least not on my face...

What was the purpose of that open declaration? Make me feel uncomfortable?

Well... It kind of worked since it did make me feel incredibly stupid; my stomach sunk in a strange feeling of guilty, my trademark sly grin disappeared from my face and shifted into a blank stare.

I didn't know what to say.

"Uh..."

Noticing my uneasiness, she wore a condescending smile and pretended that nothing happened few moments before - just to avoid making me feel more embarrassed than I already was.

"You're right, we are all going again to Kanto..." Solidad tapped on my shoulder than returned to the Contest Hall with Harley. " I shouldn't worry about that, right?"

* * *

In the next day, I decided to spend my last evening in Sinnoh going for a walk before dinner. Although my favorite climate comes from the sunny beaches in Hoenn, I'd definitely miss the cold breeze and the snowing points of Sinnoh. That would be my last chance to enjoy the cold weather before going back to home.

So I left the Pokemon Center with my thick winter jacket and gloves, carrying some spare money in my pockets to eat something later. Without any nosy people stalking my shadows, I considered that a nice chance to call May and find out what happened during the past months.

PokeNav in hands, I activated the search tool in my phone contact list and started scanning the names in alphabetical order. Checked it once, tried filtering it by the letter 'M', tried using keywords search, checked the complete list twice...

...But then I remembered we've actually never exchanged numbers.

* * *

_"Drew, please let me add you to my list! Come here, let me synch with you."_

_"Hm? Why do you need my PokeNav number?"_

_"To show off and tell everybody how special I am?... Hehehe, I'm joking! Well, it's for emergencies, you know? Better know how are you and where I can find you, it might be useful someday."_

_"Sounds like a stalker. Are you that desperate to track my activities and find out my training secrets?"_

_"No? C'mon... It's not because you're my rival, Mr Paranoid."_

_"Then tell me a good reason. Go ahead, I'm all ears."_

_"Because... Hey! Drew, stop smiling that way!"_

_"Don't you find funny how the fangirl reason you mentioned few seconds ago sounds very fitting to you as well?"_

_"NO WAY! Argh, never mind!... Forget it, I give up!"_

* * *

Well, if my memory serves me right, I guess after massacring her few times with that fangirl thing she just gave up on getting my , we were rivals and we did bump at each other almost every week since we were competing for the same ribbons in Johto... Pokemon Centers and Contest Halls, that's how to proceed to find me during Contest seasons - and she knew that, of course.

But the world is made of mountains of ironies and surprises. Something odd happened and her "emergency" justification suddenly got some... _Validity_.

I closed my PokeNav and flock of Starly flew over my head. The sun was already fading out and most of the street lights were lit in a matter of minutes. I stopped by the entrance of an opened park then sighed heavily, looking up to the sky.

Time runs away fast when you're swimming in your thoughts. Damned thing waits for no one when you get lost and try going back to the right track.

The park was a place full of trees and bugs, a small lake and several playground toys for little children and pokemon. It was almost empty since it was already getting dark - but that wasn't a big problem for me. Private moments like these were great to release my pokemon and have some peaceful free time with them - and my partners definitely deserved that after our successful victory.

Masquerain, Butterfree and Flygon had fun flying around the trees and scaring away wild pokemon. Absol sat near my feet and Roserade quickly claimed her spot by my side.

"Ee?"

Eevee timidly walked closer to the three of us, looking at me with big confused eyes. I knew what he wanted to tell me.

"Yeah... You want to evolve soon, right? Sorry, I haven't decided yet which stone should we get... What would you like to be?"

"Hey, sorry for eavesdropping you..."

A pokemon trainer crouched by Eevee's side and patted on his head. "You should talk to my friend, she used to own an Eevee like yours! She could give you some advice."

Far away from us, on the other side of the lake, I spotted a person sitting on a bench talking to a small pokemon by her side. She was laughing out loud, tapping her own leg in joy while throwing her head back - exactly the way May used to act when interacting with her close friends.

_Red bandanna and red t-shirt_.

For an instant I imagined that my mind was tricking me; I suddenly felt my shoes walking fast than I should be, my stomach pulled me down to the ground and unexpectedly worried words came out from my lips.

"May, where you've been all this ti—"

However looking closer, I noticed that girl had blond hair and she was older than I thought.

"Hi? How may I help you?"

Besides her similar attire, she had nothing to do with May.

* * *

I asked myself if I should go after her number or if I should wait for her in Kanto. It would be stupid to go after her that night just to meet her at the subway station few days later, wouldn't it?

Do I miss her?

_"See you in Sinnoh, Drew."_

I remember those words. Confident pose, cheeky grin, burning passion for rivalry... It wasn't just a goodbye - we definitely sealed a charm with indirect words and body language. We promised meeting each other in Sinnoh.

_"I see you in the next Contest season. Take care, May."_

I also remember my own words. She looked at me with a funny face then gave one of those radiant and contagious smile.

_"I'll win next time, Drew! Mark my words!"_

May has this funny ability to make people drown in her eyes. They glow in innocence and surprise - however, very unexpectedly, it drags you into the deep ocean. It is intoxicating. I think she has never noticed about that power...

...Which makes it dangerous yet definitely charming.

Anyway...

Tomorrow I'll go back to LaRousse then head to Saffron once again. I'll apply for the new Contest season with Solidad, Harley, Brianna... They all updated their passports to Kanto. We are all going to be rivals again, I'm thrilled to compete against new people and win my rematches against familiar faces.

I wonder if May will be there this time?

* * *

**A/N:** I lost the archives from my [Connect] project so I ended up writing this on instead /sob

This won't be too long, there are only more four chapters to go. And geez, it's hard to write 1st person POV stuff in a foreign language lol. I mean, I have already lots of trouble with my 3rd person POV stories but this... lol I need to practice this more often.


	2. Chapter 2: Guilt

**[Don't you miss her?]  
**

* * *

**Chapter two - Guilt**

* * *

Do I miss her?

We all miss May.

I wonder why we didn't exchange our PokeNav numbers...

Today earlier in the morning I arrived at Saffron's train station and registered my passport for Kanto's Contest season.

As expected, I met Solidad, Brianna and Harley at the Pokemon Center. I was the last one to arrive and sit together with them; they were waiting for me to order lunch and travel to Celadon City. The girls were talking about Contest costumes while Harley was polishing his nails with a bored look on his face.

"Oh... It's our _pretty boy_," he said in a sarcastic voice. "So, what did you do to our sweet princess? Stop hiding the truth, hon."

I simply shrugged indifferently instead of arguing with Harley. I figured out the best way to annoy everybody who wanted to tease me about May was to pretend I just didn't care. Well, nobody enjoy having their favorite jokes and dreams crushed, right?

Harley groaned out loud, clearly disappointed with my uninterested answer.

"Harley, it's definitely not Drew's fault that May isn't here yet—" Solidad reprimanded her friend quite softly (I don't know how they tolerate each other...) then looked at me with that trademark '_gentle but intimidating'_ stare. "—right, Drew?"

Everybody glared at me with curiosity and anxiety.

Do you know that awkward feeling of being judged about something you have nothing to do?

Those who are fairly close to May... They are all aware that sometimes she can be very stubborn, reckless and silly. Yet no one hates May because of that: people know how these stupid slips are just plain ignorance - they're not (they're _never_) bad intentions. She's damn naïve, it's almost like she walks around the world with a permanent glowing sign on her head saying "_I'm sorry, forgive me, I don't know what I am saying or doing_"...

"_Drew knows how to speak and enchant his fans_", that's what people say? Honestly, I'm not a bad guy but I guess my devilish side does out-stand my niceness with full colors. My close partners and rivals consider the fact I'm a sarcastic bastard and completely self-aware of my own poisonous tongue a very common knowledge.

Well. I don't and _I can't_ deny that. Now that I think about it... What should we do, accuse the dorky charismatic airhead or trust the smart and _manipulating cynic_?

Yeah, of course everybody who is close enough from both of us will always favor May in this kind of situation.

Gosh, ignorance is such a bliss.

"Guys, we're just rivals. I have no idea what's going on with her life, we only face each other on stage about once a month and that's all... How could that be my sole fault?"

Brianna sighed in relief for something I didn't get and, instead of talking to me, Harley decided to focus back on his unpolished nails. Solidad just smiled and nodded her head quietly as if she was apologizing for her straightforward question.

* * *

After killing two hours with random boring chit-chat, we ended up ordering food without May.

As the hours went by, I noticed some famous coordinators and familiar faces around the Pokemon Center.

That was an interesting way to check how hard the Contests for Kanto would be - since everybody who wanted to compete this year needed to register their passports at Saffron's Pokemon Center.

"Maybe May is just a little bit late... She's a little bit clumsy, isn't she?"

Brianna is a sweet girl. Her '_little bit_' lines are funny, it's like she doesn't like saying bad stuff about other people so she tones down the flaws with small bits.

I knew she only wanted to cheer up the three of us - yet that comment only reinforced the bad vibes about that silent empty seat.

We decided to stay there a 'little bit' longer - after all, perhaps what happened was exactly what Brianna had suggested: May could be a 'little bit' late.

"Hmpf..." Harley shrugged, laughing to himself. "She always arrive at the last second, huh. How does she want to be a Top Coordinator acting like that?"

Well, that was actually a very plausible theory. Isn't May the queen of the dorks? Clumsy, lost and absent-minded - the biggest airhead from Hoenn. I could perfectly imagine that silly girl arriving in front of us at the last-minute, waving her passport in the air with purple despair glued to her face.

"_Ehhh, I'm going to miss the registration day for Kanto's Contests!_" or something like "_I'm so sorry! I'm so late, please help me! Tell me I didn't blow the deadline!_"... Something in my mind kept telling me that, at any moment, this particular scene was going to happen in front of our eyes...

...But it didn't.

Brianna forced a smile, looking for some support in any of the three of us. She found no help at all.

"You know, what if she woke up earlier than everybody and left Saffron before we found this table for us... We will all meet her later in Celadon City, yeah? Right, Mr Harley? Right, Solidad? Mr Drew?"

That's what we were hoping for now.

We crossed the gateways of Saffron to cross Route Seven and headed straight to Celadon City. It was a smooth and easy walk; cities are quite close from each other in this region of Kanto. No wonder there are so many bicycles crossing the roads of the continent.

You know, there was something very odd about our quartet. It wasn't that weird traveling by myself in Kanto for the first time, yet now that we were together...

It wasn't Brianna's fault, it's just- We were lacking that fundamental piece that makes that team work and interact with each other.

Where is May?

* * *

Where is she?

Do they miss her?

I guess so...

A massive heavy silence reigned above our heads. It's sticky and awkward.

Uh...

Can I confess something?

I'm aware that I'm quite paranoid. Okay, I do care about myself and how the world sees me - it's no big deal.

May used to complain a lot about my distance policy with everybody, telling me that pushing myself away from other people was an awful mistake - but I never had my paranoia out of my control. It was just fine the way it was.

However, this time I noticed something else is inciting my controlled senses to panic.

It's... Awful. My hands are sweating, my forehead is burning... Ugh, my stomach.

Heck, I didn't do anything to deserve that!

I mean, it shouldn't strike me as something serious but I gotta admit I've been thinking about two questions...

Did I actually deserve that?

Maybe I'm just being too paranoid. Perhaps this is only a random night with flu... One pill and the sickness feeling will be gone in an hour.

But what if I did say something stupid and hurt her feelings that badly?

N-No! _No way!_

That's such a... _Absurd hypothesis_. Really, we are only rivals. I've never said non-constructive critique to her! That kind of stuff is not harsh, right?

Besides I'm pretty sure every time I poke at her weaknesses, May explodes so loudly that it makes impossible to not notice it. I didn't do anything, right?

Why do I think I'm getting crazy?

Well... We arrived at Celadon City's Pokemon Center in the end of the day...

...And this is what happened.

* * *

The four of us registered for Celadon's Contest just in time.

"It's time for_ Harley's Extravaganza Shopping Time_! Wooo, let's go wild!"

Harley was ready to celebrate the new Contest season with a crazy shopping spree (Celadon's mall was indeed huge and impressive), grabbing Solidad and Brianna's arms as soon as we finished our bureaucratic duties.

I discreetly walked away from the trio and went back to the Pokemon Center.

"Hi, I'm looking for someone. I'd like to check a name in the Celadon Contest's list, please."

"I'm sorry..." Nurse Joy delicately covered her mouth with one hand. "Contest log data are supposed to be confidential info, I can't show you other people's profiles."

"Oh."

Well, that was a fast way to make the problem more complicated. I just shrugged, not really impressed with my bad luck. "I see."

"You could wait until next week, I'm sure you will find that person at the Contest Hall."

I cringed. I wouldn't bear waiting a whole week, not now. My conscience would kill me if I dared to give up on this quest.

"It's kind of... Urgent."

"I'm sorry, I wish I could do that but I can't— Oh, I may have seen the coordinator you're looking for. Does that help you? It's the best I can do... Could you describe that person for me?"

"Ugh..." A sweat drop rolled down my forehead. "Well, did you see by any chance—"

It was hard to describe May only using her physical appearance - her most prominent features come from her unique personality... They're too hard to explain with simple and short words.

May is stubborn- yet she can be a sweet girl too... But she's not really sweet, most of the times she can be really tomboyish— yet she likes girly stuff as well, uhh... May is loud and make funny facial expressions— buuut sometimes she's really timid and introverted— wait...

May is... _Unique_.

I-I mean, unique in a weird sense.

Besides, I couldn't describe her clothes at all, what if she changed her wardrobe like she did in Johto?

"—a brunette coordinator about my age and height? She was probably wearing a bandanna."

Nurse Joy stared at me patiently as if what I had said was way too much generic, so I tried to squeeze the very last drops from my description. "May is not fat neither skinny, she is quite a pretty girl. Her eyes are deep blue and she usually wears her hair split in two long bangs... She's also very clumsy."

There we go! Clumsy, that word no one can deny: it describes her perfectly.

"Well... I'm sorry, I don't remember seeing anyone that matches your description." She pointed a thick book resting on the desks from the entrance hall, trying to comfort me with a condescending voice. "It might take a lot of time but you could try the Center's check-in book. That person might have signed her name..."

"This is going to take me hours..." I raised an eyebrow in a mix of annoyance and disappointment. "Thank you but I'll pass that one."

Nurse Joy just shrugged in silence, slightly hopeless about my search. I didn't show much concern about it anyway - therefore her reaction was pretty much justified.

I was about to leave the Center when that girl sprouted from behind a wall.

"Hi, Mr Drew!"

"Brianna... Why you... Why you didn't go with them?"

* * *

I won't lie, of course I knew the answer. I guess Brianna might have a huge crush on me - I'm not fully sure but the way she acts... I think something is going on behind her overzealous and shy behavior.

"I..." She blushed a bit then nodded to me with a warm smile on her lips. "Well, I decided to make you some company. Isn't it nice?"

I guess I was supposed to answer 'yes' but my headache allowed me just to nod in silence.

"It is a great pleasure to be with you, Mr Drew. You have no idea how happy I am right now! Hehehe, a moment like this is much more special than any mall in Celadon City!"

Brianna giggled then timidly walked closer to me, trying to fork any reaction out of my blank stare. "Would you like to talk about something?"

I don't know why it was so hard to do anything besides dwelling in silence - I was struggling to sound nice as much as she was trying to hide her anxiety and embarrassment.

I do like being admired, but today... "I... I don't know."

"Hm?" She dodged her glance away from my eyes, trying to stay as calm as possible. "You know, we could do or talk about... Anything?"

Somehow it felt like I would be abusing on Brianna's niceness and playing with her feelings if I let her come closer.

I shook my hand negatively, trying to end the conversation and interrupt her bonding attempt.

"I'm sure shopping with Harley and Solidad is much more fun than staying here with me... Sorry, I'm not a good entertainer."

"Mr Drew... What's wrong?"

Yet I didn't know what should I answer. We both were left floating in an awkward and heavy silence.

Should I have told her the truth - how the thoughts about May were haunting me? Should I just shrug it away and pretend that nothing happened? Change the topic, ask her to leave me alone or just shake my head in silence?

"Oh... I understand now." Suddenly, Brianna jumped in terror, holding her cheeks in despair. "Ehhh, I'm being annoying!"

"I'm sorry, I s-should have realized before that you didn't want t-to talk now!" She yelped, face burning in red shades. "I understand, my attention for you is boring and annoying. Please forgive me, I'm so dense and insensitive, I'm really sorry, I'll leave you alone!"

"W-Wait..." My voice jumped in hesitation, maybe a little bit more shocked than I wanted to. I was clearly worried and surprised by such self-depreciation comment. "You don't need to leave, I..."

"It's okay, I understand! Don't worry, Mr Drew..." Brianna held her tears and shook her head to calm herself. "I think I've got it now... You're a very introverted person too, huh? You need your space and some time alone by yourself, I'm sorry for disrespecting that..."

I suddenly realized how scare people away.

My personal bubble space is quite big but... I think only few people have tried invading it before. To be honest I've been kicking people out way before they reach any danger zones.

I am introverted but... It doesn't mean I dislike everybody. Yet it seems I act like I do hate everybody... Or as worse as that, it looks like I simply don't care about anyone.

Geez, am I that bad?

I want to give a perfect answer... I think too much, I overanalyze stuff... Then I say too little.

Am I too cold? I mean, do people really expect more interaction from me? More words? More expression?

"Brianna... I'm sorry. Today is not a good day, I'm really sorry. I promise we can chat and have fun another day. It's just— Today is not my day, alright? _It's not personal_."

Did I really say_ "It's not personal"_? Ugh, that sounded like a fake promise... Guess I suck at making girls feel better.

She shook her head lightly then opened a big and soft smile. She closed her eyes, trying to force a nicer smile on her face. It was delicate but there was something poignant about that answer.

"It's, okay, Drew."

I wonder how often was May forced to fake her smile like that...

"Brianna, I promise it's not personal." I lowered my head, still a bit shaken from all the strange sensations that invaded my chest a moment ago. I have no idea why I stressed on the "not personal" thing again. "I— _Wait_!"

"Huh?" Brianna stopped walking for an instant. "Yes?"

"Here, sync with me." I pulled my PokeNav from my bag and showed it to her. "I'll call you when I'm done. Please share my number with Solidad if you want."

She blinked in surprise as if I just had done something really unexpected.

"Call me if you need me... I just need some time alone by myself. We can all have some tea later, feel free to pick the place for us, deal?"

Brianna stood up still for a brief moment then quickly pulled her pink PokeNav from her pocket.

"Thank you, Drew... Take care, okay? We will be waiting for your call."

What a relief.

A smaller smile, but no longer a sad one.

* * *

It's past midnight now. I can't sleep.

Where's May?

Full name, PokeNav number, pokemon trainer ID... Why did I never bother to ask her these obvious questions?

I tried to find any clues that could help me find her. My PokeNav and my bag didn't have anything remotely related to May; I didn't ask her personal pictures, I didn't save those magazine articles about her Contest's performances.

I did find a scrap of paper in my notebook, though.

_[Stop writing 'May is a loser, Drew was here' in my notebook, jerk! Oh, and good luck tomorrow, I want to battle you in the finals today!]_

Deep words but not really helpful for my search.

"A jerk, huh?..." No one awake, I guess it's fine to admit it out loud now. "Yeah, maybe... How lame."

I'm stupid... Perhaps my words are way stronger than I imagined.

Is it really my fault she's not here with us today?

Did I hurt her?

What would she do in my place?

_...Huh, me?_

_What do you think, Drew? If I were you of course I'd ask everybody where the hell are you! O-Of course, d-does it matter what other people will think about you? What matters is what I feel about you, not what everybody else think about it! We are rivals, we are friends... What would you do in my place, Drew? Wouldn't you try doing the same? Please, answer me!  
_

Something heavy made my stomach sink in guilt. I knew the answer for my imaginary May's question.

I decided to leave my dorm and find the answer... Now.

I need an answer.

I refuse to give up, her name must be here somewhere in the list...

I only need—

* * *

"Chansey!"

The round nurse pokemon raised her pocket lantern and spotted a remaining guest at the entrance desks hall. She ran back to behind the counter and gently knocked on the staff room's door - where Nurse Joy from the night shift was reading a medicine book in a peaceful silence.

"Chan, chansey, chansey chansey!"

"Calm down..." Nurse Joy cocked her head to the side, trying to hear Chansey's fast and complicated words better. "What? Some boy left the dorms and went to the main hall? But it's past 2am..."

She put her hat on and followed her partner in silent steps.

The pink-haired woman gasped in shock when Chansey's lantern pointed at a boy sleeping near the cafeteria tables; however, the healer pokemon stopped her master from flipping out by making a silence sign with its hand.

Drew felt asleep over the Pokemon Center's guestbook, holding in his hands the valuable scrap of paper.

"What a stubborn kid." Nurse Joy sighed in relief, rolling her eyes out. "I wonder what is he looking for..."

"Chansey!" The pink pokemon covered the sleeping boy with a light blanket over his shoulders. "Chan, chansey..."

* * *

**A/N:** I think I could easily change the "Don't you miss her?" title for "Drew, why are you so obsessive about May when you're alone by yourself", lol.

I've been stupidly busy and I shouldn't be posting this right now, but I wanted to upload something for all of you who have waited for me and sending those nice messages in my review screen/pm inbox ;_; thank you, guys! You are really sweet, I just need to finish some stuff irl until the end of this month then I'll be able to update and rewrite loads of stuff like last year, I promise! This is an important month for my academic life, wish me good luck!

Cheers~


	3. Chapter 3: Yes

**[Don't you miss her?]**

* * *

**Chapter three - Yes  
**

* * *

Time runs away extremely fast when you're swimming in your thoughts. Damned thing waits for no one when you get lost and try going back to the right track...

It is hard to find someone when your pride prohibits you from telling the others what you're trying to do. My search for now is as slow as a fat sleepy Slacking.

It's... _Weird_. So weird. I can't believe I've just lost two days thinking about May and searching for any hints about her current status. While everybody is working on their Appeal tests, I'm here hiding inside my room staring at my "where's May" notebook with several inconclusive notes.

That's depressing.

After hours trying to fetch more information from my traveling partners (without raising any suspicious about my interests), all I could find out was that everybody actually had May's PokeNav number and how they really tried calling her in the past months... Yet she didn't answer any of them.

Oh, and the most recent thing about May? She was last seen together with her mother eating in a lamen noodle house in Petalburg, according to Brianna's friends from "Master Drew Fanclub" (_don't ask, I didn't name it_) - May's extraordinary hunger caught their attention by emptying bowls in the speed of light. Brianna didn't remember when exactly that happened.

_So stupidly stalkerish_ - I know it, right? I could easily have asked May herself for her ID years ago instead of acting like a creeper now. But hey, I'm still the mysterious and cool coordinator in a friendly rivalry with the Princess of Hoenn... My fans don't know this stalker who is avoiding his friends in order to find out if May is okay or not.

That's perfect boy Drew for you... Charming prince on stage, pathetic loser in his mind. _Heh_.

Thank Arceus that people cannot read each other's thoughts. My career would be so doomed.

_Focus. Focus, grasshead._

Anyway, I tried calling her number for the first time - and _alas,_ as expected, no answer from her side. I'm stuck again in step number one.

Should I ask... Ash Ketchum? Brock? Max?

Uhhh, _Team Rocke_t?

I think that's a dead end? I never saw any of them again and I'm pretty sure the first two don't remember me anymore; May's brother should - but I have no idea how to find him. He's probably back to his house in Hoenn... Which doesn't help me at all. I mean, where in Hoenn do May and her brother live?

What were their names... Dawn? Zoey?... N-Nando, I think? Geez, I have no idea who are her coordinator friends from Sinnoh.

Writing down several names on my notebook, I noticed that I actually knew her close friends and family better than expected. Yet, at the same time, I felt a bittersweet feeling in my tongue - as if I didn't know enough any of them. Familiar names and faces who were vaguely thrown in a corner of my memory boxes.

I can see inside my thoughts that many files are lost in the wrong place. It is quite weird, since most archives are systematically organized by categories, importance, date... But there are some random memories scattered around on the floor.

May?

Beautifly and frisbees. Her first Contest and her first defeat. Contagious laughter, funny and expressive faces, clumsy Appeals. Sour Miracle Berries in Mirage Island. Our promise. _"See you in Sinnoh, Drew."_

Suddenly, I felt inside my chest a warm thug in my heart. Was that another warning?

_"Time waits for no one, Drew... But that doesn't mean you can't change stuff at the last moment, right?"_

Sometimes May can be stubborn and spoiled like a brat but I know she's a very special girl. Her niceness and natural cuteness overshadow her lack of patience and other major weakness.

Heh, those ocean eyes... Those damned ocean eyes that charms my sight, waves that keep taunting my feet. Do you want to take something away from me, May? Why?

Why now, why do these memories and images about her don't leave me alone?

* * *

I woke up again under a pink heavy blanket and an angry face staring at me.

"Mr Drew, this is the last time I am covering you. Next time I catch you sleeping in the main hall, I won't give you a blanket neither I will bother to wake you up before people leave their rooms."

Nurse Joy sighed, taking away the thick guest book from my hands.

Chansey showed me a pocket watch: 4:15 am.

Damn, I felt asleep again flipping pages during late hours.

"Could you please act like a normal person and do your personal research in a regular time? What you're doing is definitely not healthy for your body."

"I'm sorry, that won't happen again..." I could only look away and bite my tongue in embarrassment. "I..."

She's right. Trying to hide my stupid mania is only making me look even more stupid.

Do I miss her?

"...Uh, thank you for everything and I'm sorry about all this trouble."

"You must really like that person," she stopped furrowing her eyebrows in reprehension and gave me a soft smile. "I understand the one you're looking is important but you need to rest. That person would agree with me too, right?"

I tried to smile and look like a charming boy but all I managed to express was a yawning frown.

Well, I was very tired.

Worried that she could get angry with such stupid answer, I did my best to complement my stupid face with a witty answer.

"Yes, she's important."

A really awkward reply that doesn't answer the original question.

But that's all I could think and say. '_She's important_' - I was so exhausted I'm even not sure if I actually said these exact words.

Surprisingly, Nurse Joy somehow understood what I meant. She just giggled quietly and dismissed me with a hand wave.

* * *

I woke up in my room with Brianna's typical friendly (and insecure) SMS beeping on my PokeNav.

_[Good morning, Mr Drew! _

_I hope I didn't interrupt your sleep, I'm very sorry if I did wake you up. Please forgive me!  
_

_ Ms Solidad asked me to message you, I'm sorry if I'm bothering you!...  
_

_Ms Erika will host today a workshop about "Class, Beauty and Plant Pokemon" at her Gym and we thought that might interest you. _

_I know you are an expert at grass pokemon but Erika's pokemon are very pretty, they are fantastic! We can all have some ice cream after the masterclass, how about it?_

_Please come with us if you're free today, it will be fun! If you still training for tomorrow's Contest, I wish you good luck and I hope we meet soon!_

_See you! :) ]_

Cute.

Undeniably cute... But no, I'm not feeling exactly excited for doing anything until I solve my mystery.

Going out with friends, social events, all of this... These are supposed to be nice and pleasurable but... Ugh, no.

Skipping that lovely invitation wouldn't hurt anyone, right? Dropping it in ten, nine, eight, seven...

I was about to delete the private message when I suddenly lost my mind and kept staring at the red button I was about to press.

* * *

(...)  
_"Hey, Drew! Are you free tonight?"_

_"Not really. What's wrong?"_

_"Wrong? Oh, nothing is wrong! Would you like to watch the fireworks on the beach with me?"_

_"Uh.. Why? I mean, now?"_

_"Yeah, I know you can see them from the hotel's garden but I found a great place to watch the show, it's near the rocks and the sea. _

_It's a beautiful place, this is going to be a special moment for sure!"_

_"Sounds good. It will be nice to stay away from all those people."_

_"Yay, alright! Let's go, Solidad and Harley are already there on the beach waiting for us!"_

_"Ah. Hm... Never mind, then. I'm going back to the hotel."_

_"Uh-Wait, what? Drew!"_

_"I'm sorry, May. I guess I'll rest in my room instead, today was a very long day..."_

_"Drew..."_

_"You're not alone, don't worry about me. See you guys tomorrow, enjoy the fireworks for me."_

_(...)_

* * *

No, no, no...

No.

_No!_

No, I must stop doing that! It's because of this stupid avoiding behavior that I'm here today without a single clue about what the heck happened to May!

_[Hey, Brianna. Good morning, thanks for the message. I'm sorry, I guess I'll have to skip it again. I have to (...)_  
_Can we have some ice cream after tomorrow's Contest? I'll be back later._  
_See you, cheers.]_

It made me feel a little better typing that short message, yet I forced myself to only send it until I found a proper excuse to fill the blank space after "I have to".

I mean, I can't just say "_Hey, I'm looking for May_" - that would sound incredibly weird...

Turning the TV on, I flicked through the channels looking for ideas.

_"Oak's Lecture Time!"_

...As if losing my time watching TV would help me solving any of my problems. Geez, maybe I should give up on trying playing the detective.

_"We're here today in front of Celadon's Hotel to interview one of the most important pokemon researcher in the last decades, Professor Samuel Oak!"_

_"Hello, Johto Channel! It's a pleasure to be here today with you."_

_"So, what do you have for us today?"_

For Arceus, this is stupid! I have no clues and no ideas of where should I start looking for―

_"I'm going to talk about the Eevee line, a rare and fascinating pokemon commonly bred in Celadon City. In the next hour we will discuss about its evolutions and unique features!"_

―Wait.

This... Is exactly what I need.

_[(...) I have to talk to Professor Samuel Oak, he might have the answer for something I've been looking for a while. Call me if any of you need anything.]_

* * *

"Tomorrow's going to be an easy Contest. Tomorrow's going to be an easy Contest..."

Those were the words I kept enchanting to myself while I rented a bike to chase Professor Oak instead of training Absol's Appeal for Celadon City's Contest.

Today I learned that I should try cycling more often or else it will ruin my reputation - I don't think a sweating and panting Drew is considered the "Prince of Roses" neither the "Elegant Coordinator from LaRousse". Almost surrendering before the 20-minute mark, I kept riding and singing the mantra to avoid collapsing on the floor in exhaustion.

While I was crossing the avenue to the Game Center Corner I saw a van from the crew of Johto Channel on the other side of the city.

"Hey!"

Parking my bicycle and running with the most casual expression I could put on my face, I waved to the cameraman and the journalist resting inside the van. "Is Professor Oak still around?"

"He went to Celadon PokeUniversity after we finished the clip then went back to Celadon Hotel, over there." The young woman answered, pointing at the building near the Gym. "I'm not sure if he's still there, though. Profesor said something about an appointment and a helicopter, he's probably returning to Pallet soon."

"Damn..." I bit my lower lip in distress. "Thank you very much, I gotta go."

I entered the building and discreetly entered the elevator, heading straight to the heliport area.

Tapping my fingers on the mirrored wall, I wondered for the first time that, perhaps, this crazy searching actually had a purpose.

It's something about May... And maybe more about myself than I would like to admit.

My world is just fine the way it is now. I'm fine with my life, I can say I'm a "happy" person.

To show your feelings, to let yourself open your inner Pandora's Box... Reality is harsh and I know that opening a small entrance to the outer world means I can get hurt. It is _comfortable _to stay in my safe zone - however, I can't stop thinking about all the things I'm missing from blocking every single connection attempt. So far my emotional slips only brought me embarrassment and annoyance, but... Honestly? I think I want to keep trying, I don't know exactly why but _I just feel it_.

I don't know if I should call it a temptation... Or a subtle _awakening_.

The elevator reached the last floor. Crossing a long corridor, I saw a tall hotel staff man in front of the door to the heliport area.

"Excuse me, sir... May I see your pass or your room card?"

"Is Professor Oak there?"

"Yes, he has just entered the heliport area." The lanky man answered courteously but refused to leave his place. "May I see your pass or your room card, please?"

"Let me see him, please." I frowned in impatience. I admire and respect efficient people - _but definitely not when I need to act out the rules_. "It's something _urgent_, I'll leave as soon as we are done."

"I'm sorry, sir... You need a check-in before I let you enter a private area."

"Well, then this should be enough for my check-in. "Opening my wallet, I took a large sum of money and placed it on his hand. "..._Please_?"

The man stared at me with puzzled looks for a moment - then opened the door to the entrance.

(Don't judge me, money isn't everything in life but it does help solving many problems.)

I was right on time: Professor Oak was chatting in a garden area with an assistant while finishing having some coffee. A couple of bags and packages on the table - they were fully set to leave Celadon City and head back to Pallet Town.

Trying to sound as casual as possible, I joined the circle with a short and polite greeting.

"Hello, may I interrupt you for a moment?" Grinning in style, I smiled to the two men in the table. "Excuse me, my name is Drew and I'd like to talk with you for a minute, if that's not a problem."

"Oh, sure! I'm very sorry but we are in a hurry today," Professor said with a condescending voice, waving his hand as if he was trying to apologize himself. "Our helicopter is coming in a minute but I'll do what I can. Is it something I can answer really quickly?"

"Oh." My smile froze down into a blank stare. "Yes, I think so..."

Professor Oak and his assistant looked at me, waiting for an answer.

I opened my mouth to ask my embarrassing question, ready to be everybody's mocking target. "Professor, I..."

_Break out the safety zone._

"Well, how can I say..."

_C'mon, break out the safety zone._

_Ask him―_

But I couldn't say it.

"―Can I... Go with you?"

What the heck I was thinking?_!_

* * *

That worked perfectly.

Yet it was a stupid idea.

"Wow! This Roserade is in a perfect shape, do you think it is ranked in a top score according to the effort values system?"

"Most likely, Tracey. Drew, your team looks so healthy and lively! You should be proud of your pokemon... By the way, did you and Eevee decided what evolution you're going for?"

No, it is not nice that I'm listening to Professor and this Tracey guy talk about my pokemon inside a helicopter heading to Pallet Town.

"I'm not sure yet..."

I sunk my face into my hands - it looked like an indecision sign about my pokemon's choices, _but seriously_? That was a pure display of mourning and denial about my stupid idea.

"I'm so confused, I need a sec to think about it more carefully."

"Making choices is hard, especially when you have no second chances. Take it easy." The assistant shook his head in a friendly nod. "But I am pretty sure you and your pokemon will find the ideal answer. Judging by your team, you are pretty analytical and wise!"

"He's right, young man. It reminds me of that old saying about how _excellence is never an accident."_

"Hm?" Tracey grabbed a notebook and a pen. "_Never an accident?_"

_"It is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, and intelligent execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives - choice, not chance, determines your destiny._" Professor declared the quote with a poetic voice, handling me few colorful folders from his bag. "Well, either way... Here, these might help you. This is Bill's latest material about Eeveelutions, can you believe we've just found a new form living in a far away continent?"

"I can already see the lab and the hills," the piloted called from the cockpit. "We're probably landing in five minutes."

"I think that's all I can offer you for now..." Professor Oak smiled. "Is that all you want to know?"

I don't know what does decide my destiny―

"Professor... How can I contact May?"

―But yes, I miss her.

* * *

Professor Oak frowned his eyebrows in puzzlement, obviously intrigued by such weird and unexpected question.

"Pardon me?"

"Huh, the coordinator from Hoenn..." I felt my cheeks getting redder and warmer, as if my question was something truly awkward. "Ash Ketchum's friend, little Max's older sister."

"Oh, Norman's daughter!" He clapped his hands once. "That one, right?"

Norman? The Normal Gym Leader of Petalburg City?

"Eh?"

"May is Caroline and Norman's daughter! I'm sure you can find her calling the gym." Professor Oak laughed. "I don't have their number but it's very easy to find it, just ask any gym leader and you should be fine."

"Brock got it, doesnt he?" Tracey raised his index finger in the air. "He's the gym leader from Pewter."

I felt the world melting below my feet and a big sign saying "you should be fine, idiot" being place over my head.

May's family is famous. How did I never know that?!

"Wait," Professor Oak stopped me before I ended up renting another bike and riding away to Pewter City. "I know someone who probably has the telephone number of their house in Petalburg."

* * *

Pallet Town is a very simple but pretty place. Green hills and flowers peacefully blend in the country life scenario, small groups of houses appear once in a while on the horizon and very few wild pokemon can be seen around the road. It is quite isolated from the center of Kanto but I can understand why May used to say how it was "charming" town.

"_A Pure White Beginning_" - I wonder if Pallet's motto is a reference to the other color-named cities. I mean, it would be funny to imagine any other meaning to this line...

[_Beep beep_]

Solidad messaged me.

_["Are you alright?"]_

Great, I guess she noticed I was being more avoidant than usual.

Taking a long and meaningful breath, I typed her back the blandest (and real) truth.

["_I'm in Pallet Town, brb"_]

Nope, I didn't bother inserting any details about that answer.

Walking down a ground road, I spotted a light blue house with a very colorful garden. A woman wearing a summer hat and her Mr Mime had just arrived there - I tried to call her but my voice could only emit a weak whisper that remotely sounded like a "o?".

"_...Hell_o?"

"Yes?" She smiled gently, resting a basket of pink roses in her arms - which were, by the way, very healthy and well-groomed flowers. "May I help you?"

I know what are good roses so I can assure you something: that woman knew how to take care of them; she definitely had good hands and something about her gave good vibes to the environment.

It's hard to explain, but Mrs Ketchum emanates a warm but mysterious aura around herself. It's like an ordinary-looking person hiding extraordinary powers - and not in an intimidating way.

"Well..."

I felt my cheeks getting warmer and my voice shaking a bit - this was going to be very embarrassing...

I mean, Ash was May and Max's friend. I had never talked to him before, we only exchanged few words a couple of times and we battled against each other... _Once?_

"My name is Drew, I think Ash has never told you about me but―"

"Oh! Nice to meet you, Drew... You're the coordinator from Hoenn, right? Please, come in!"

"―Huh?..."

* * *

**A/N:** I'm falling asleep on the keybord right now so this chapter might have some (huuuuge?) slips, I will check it again later to pick up some mistakes that might have escaped from this morning's editing. Oh, Oak's comment about a new Eeveelution was a coincidence once I've written most of this chapter few months ago, way before Slypheon/Ninfia's announcement lol.


	4. Chapter 4: An answer

**[Don't you miss her?]**

* * *

**Chapter four - An answer**

* * *

_What?_

Ash's mother giggled, watching me blink and open my eyes in surprise.

My feet were stuck on the ground as if that woman was a menacing threat - which was a completely paradoxical reaction. It is impossible to not describe Mrs Ketchum as a merry lovable mom... She's anything but scary.

"I'm sorry, you're not the Drew from Hoenn?"

I didn't know how to ask that without sounding stupid - so I did it anyway.

"Eh... _H-How do you know me_?"

Mrs Ketchum shrugged lightly then let a warm laughter escape from her lips; it was a subtle, yet tender answer to my question. My body relaxed for a moment, even though it was still clearly puzzled about that very odd situation.

"Well, Ash doesn't have many green-haired friends!" She smiled kindly, leaning on the door. "You have a very unique hair color, dear."

"I'm Delia, nice to meet you! Come in, you're a lucky boy. I've just baked some cookies for Professor Oak and Tracey, let's have some before they are all gone!"

Me... _Ash's friend_?

Ash is May and Max's friend. I'm May's rival and Ash's... I could swear everybody (of course, including myself) would call our relationship as a _distant rivalry_, at most.

I knew Ash Ketchum was an extroverted guy but I had no idea how further his friendly personality went. That's so... Weird. Still amazed at his social skills, I couldn't stop asking myself how come I wasn't an unknown name under the roof of that house.

"I didn't know Ash talked about me to other people..."

The Ketchum home is a welcoming and cozy place - it is funny how you can easily picture a certain young spike-haired brat running around the stairs while playing with pokemon toys. That place has a very relaxing and warm atmosphere, no wonder why May sometimes would talk about Ash's house in Pallet town with that huge grin on her face.

"He loves telling me stories about his adventures." Mrs Ketchum laughed again, taking off her summer hat and placing it on the coat hanger. "Ash is definitely a very social boy."

So... According to his mother, he's pretty much a '_rival-friend-making-machine-gun_'.

I was targeted and shot by that weapon and I didn't notice it, apparently.

"May proclaimed you as her number one rival and my son used to hear her talking about it all the time... So of course your name ended up reaching my ears, hahaha!"

_Really?_

"Oh."

Curiosity caught my tongue and I _had_ to make another question.

"...Were those mentions_ good things_?"

"I can't really remember the details, but..." She offered me a plate of cookies with a kind smile. "May is such a sweet girl, I'm sure they were."

Mr Mime brought a jar of water for us and gave me annoying knowing looks.

"Miiimehehehe!"

I furrowed my eyebrows in disbelief. _Was he really going to_...

He started dancing in front of me, singing a romantic tune.

That damn pokemon even didn't bother hiding his mocking face, explicitly teasing my misfortune with a huge and malicious grin. _How dare he?!_

"Miiiiime, miiiime... Hehehe!"

"Mimey, stop!" Mrs Ketchum scolded Mr Mime lightly by placing her hands on her hips and frowning in reprehension. "That's not how you treat your guests, honey! What have I told you about other people's feeling?"

Great, now even some pokemon think I am a huge girl stalker._ How charming_. What's next? Is Arceus going to pay me a visit point a finger (_paw? I don't know_) at my face?

"Drew is Ash and May's friend, of course he cares about them. What is so funny about that, right?"

"Mimeeee..." The psychic pokemon quiet down, pouting a bit in protest. "Mime mime!..."

Taking a long breath, I spoke as clearly as possible while staring at the tidy and shiny floor. I used that comment about May as a link to my next question.

"Oh, talking about her..."

It was hard to voice my feelings - but what I felt was so strong that it made me quickly speak out the truth without any second doubts. I was so curious I had to know the answer as soon as possible.

"Professor Oak told me you got May and Max's telephone number. Can I check it, please?"

"Sure, one minute! You need to call them? I've got Caroline's number," Mrs Ketchum spoke with me while heading upstairs. "May's Mom, do you know her?"

"Yea... Yes, I know her too."

I couldn't help but smile about that. Mrs Caroline was a very nice person I met in Hoenn's Grand Festival; she was there to root for her daughter, watching all her appeals and battles. May's family is a very united one...

Mrs Ketchum returned to the living room carrying a small pink agenda in her arms. Flipping the scribbled pages and finding the right number, she handled out the notebook to me, pointing a list of phone numbers with her index finger. "Here, try these two numbers. Try the third one if none of them works, that's the Petalburg Gym's phone number."

"Ah..." I was struggling with too many feelings to express any other face than a reticent one. "Thank you very much."

"I'll leave you alone for a while. You may use the videophone so you won't waste your Dex's batteries!" She left the room again and headed to the kitchen. "Take your time, Drew. Call me if you need something!"

She didn't judge me... Not even a single stifled laugh.

"Come with me, Mimey! Let's pack the cookies for Professor and Tracey."

Mr Mime blinked in confusion then immediately followed her.

I think she noticed I was tense. She understood something serious was going on my mind.

"Thank you, Mrs Ketchum..."

It was just a small gesture - however, leaving me alone by myself was the best thing they could do to help me concentrate, call May's house... And find out the truth.

I stared at the videophone on the corner of the living room then observed the small details of the pink agenda in my hands.

That was the end of mystery.

Taking a long breath, I dialed the first number in the list.

"That's it, time to solve the puzzle."

* * *

_First beep._

May... Sometimes I feel like she's very easy to be read, yet her special skill is the ability to impress people by reinventing herself all the time.

Every small water ripple from her ocean eyes has a unique meaning - deep or not, stupid or not, logic or not, whatever. She's a very expressive girl but it doesn't mean she's 100% predictable; there are too many emotions inside those eyes, it is challenging to face her and try guessing which feeling she's going to show you.

_Second beep._

I could sit down and organize every single word I would tell her. I could try predicting some of her reactions to deliver fancier and smarter answers... It is easy to answer anything I have confidence in and toss away everything else I don't feel comfortable with. But―

I don't want to.

Why?

I figured out that my call apparently was born from... some irrational wish. _My heart_, not my brain.

Exposing your feelings makes you an extremely vulnerable person. I made some incredibly stupid things in the past hours that I would never, ever, have done if I tried to act like a hundred percent rational being. The brain is always the first one to surrender.

_And the heart... _That's why I am here sitting on that sofa, dialing to that number. _It doesn't give up that easily on what it wants._

_Third beep―_

"Hello, it's Carol―"

May's mom turned the video-call on and opened her mouth in puzzlement. "Drew?..."

"Hi."

I dived into the water praying to find my answer.

"Drew, is that you?..."

"I-I'm sorry," I spoke with a slightly shaken voice; I straightened myself on the chair then repeated my words. "I'm sorry if I scared you. Hi, Mrs Caroline, how are you?"

"Oh, it's okay, dear!" Her surprised expression slowly shifted to a friendlier and calmer one. "Hahaha, forgive me for looking so shocked, it's just― Well, good to see you, I hope everything is okay there."

Mrs Caroline clasped her hands together. She was really glad to see me.

I smiled back... I was relieved too. It was good to see everything slowly going back to normal - after so many surprises, it felt great to be in a safer zone.

"It is." I nodded, controlling myself before I could say something stupid. "How's May doing?"

My knees got weaker and I felt the bottom of my stomach sinking inside my body. It was strange and clearly an irritating sensation - yet I knew I wouldn't trade it for anything. I felt my pride slightly scratched, but... I didn't want to let that feeling go away. Somehow I was under the impression that imaginary May from my dreams would stop smiling if I refused being touched by those inconvenient emotions.

When did I change myself to that?...

"Well..." Mrs Caroline pouted a bit, exactly the way her daughter does when she's thinking about something. "Look, May's been feeling better. Actually, I'm happy you called! I think some incentive would boost her confidence a lot."

"Oh, really?"

I laughed quietly, shaking my head in disbelief. _Confidence problems? _That was so typical of May... I would never guess she skipped several Contests because of _that_. I flicked the tip of my bangs, grinning haughtily. I couldn't believe I worried about something so silly!

"It doesn't surprise me, haha. I've seen that happening more than once, Mrs Caroline, don't worry about it. It's not really severe!..."

"Oh, Drew..."

Mrs Caroline smiled back at me very meekly, as if she was afraid of saying her next words.

"Last year May suffered an accident and we decided it would be better for her health to make her stay at home for a semester..."

* * *

An accident?

_What?!_

"...The doctor says she's fine now but since then May is very afraid of leaving home." Mrs Caroline sighed, looking away from the video screen for a moment. "It's been a rough time for her, you know?"

_An accident._

My stomach, my brain, my heart... My whole body refused to digest that new information. Time suddenly escaped from my hands. Out of blue, that calm ocean devoured me with a violent tidal wave.

My smile disappeared completely.

"Is she okay now?!..." I muttered, hands gripping the phone in horror. "W-What happened?"

"...She's getting better." Mrs Caroline coughed weakly, trying to not dwell on this particular subject. "May's a strong girl, isn't she? I agree with you, it's probably just a bad period in her life, it's not severe. Things will get better..."

"...Does it hurt?"

She gave me another modest smile, pointing her index finger to an off-screen place.

"I'll be right back, May's in her room. I can call h―"

"_NO_!"

May got hurt.

I felt my earlier excitement being drained away from my body. My guts hurt, I heard my own heartbeats pulsing in an odd rhythm.

Am I an idiot?

"No, don't do that!..._ Please_."

I want to see her. But _why can't I confront her?... Why is my heart betraying me?_

"Please don't tell her I called!" I shouted it a little higher than I should have done. "May can't know we've just talked, please!"

"Huh?" Mrs Caroline eyes got wider in surprise. "I'm sorry― _but what_?"

"I-I can't..."

"_Can't?_..." She didn't understand my words. She tried to repeat my question, speaking in a slower pace. "_You can't_...?"

Feeling my hands sweat in anxiety, I felt my mouth getting dry and my shoulders trembling in tension. I shook my head, trying to organize my thoughts.

_Then why am I so afraid of finding out the truth?!_

"I... I can't," I said it again, louder and in a steadier voice. "I just can't."

"I'm sorry, I gotta go. Thank you, Mrs Caroline."

No warnings, no proper goodbyes. I hanged the phone up and sunk my face in my hands.

* * *

The dreadful mood and silence in the living room denounced the end of the call.

After a few minutes, Mrs Ketchum called my name. Her voice was clearly concerned about my defeated posture and the blank screen on the videophone.

"Drew?..."

She joined me on the sofa, placing a small colorful pack full of cookies by my side.

"Don't tell Professor, but I stole some of his cookies and packed an extra mini bag for you."

"I... I'm an insensitive jerk."

"Hm?" She tilted her head to the side. "Why are you saying that?"

_Regret, regret, regret..._ That was so wrong. Very wrong.

"I did something sickening."

I know my mind is programmed to silence my thoughts instead of opening it up for strangers - but for real, this time... My guilty deserved being an exception. _That was way too much upsetting_. My mind refused to not blame myself on my stupidity: I totally _deserved_ it.

Time waits for no one.

_How could I have betrayed her this way?..._

"I've just realized how uncaring and cold I was by not trying to call her earlier! I ignored her... May needed support... And I didn't bother doing anything to help her, argh!"

"Drew..." Mrs Ketchum frowned in a sad expression. "Don't_―_"

I clenched my fists and groaned in frustration, trying to hold down those grievous feelings.

_I need to go back to Hoenn._

_I must go back to Hoenn. Now._

I opened my PokeNav and grabbed my pokeball belt. Checking the world map, I searched the directions and distances from Pallet to Petalburg.

"Damn, I need to buy a boat ticket in Vermillion!... I only have one pokemon to help me, a six-hour trip is too much for Flygon."

I almost intentionally dropped my PokeNav on the floor. Mrs Ketchum stopped me before I could destroy or hit something in outrage.

"Wait, please calm down... Breathe. Calm down..."

She looked at my eyes, speaking in a soothing voice.

It is scary how your body forgets to control itself when you're stressed and confused. I knew my cheeks were burning in pink tones - it was impossible to not be ashamed of my own overreaction.

"I'm such an idiot, aren't I... I tried to ignore what I truly wanted and ended up being a jerk. May trusted me and I screwed it up! Why did she trust someone unreliable like me? This is so wrong, how can I face her after what I've done?!"

"Yes, just breathe..." She held my hand in a gentle but confident grip. "You're worried, that's why you're so angry, this is not wrong..."

"_Not wrong_?" I murmured in an acid voice. "Why does it feel so wrong, then? If I were truly worried, I would have done something useful."

Filling up a glass of water for me, Mrs Ketchum watched me cool down in slow steps. "You would have done something if you had noticed that before, wouldn't you? I don't know what happened, but... Drew, that still shows you really care."

That imaginary May inside my dreams... She walked away and dissipated in my foggy memories.

"She's never going to forgive me."

Mrs Ketchum looked at me with sad eyes.

"You feel like you've made something wrong. You regret it because you feel it could have been avoided... But May is your friend, isn't she? Wouldn't you forgive her if you were in her place?"

I bit my lower lip and sank in silence for a long and thoughtful dilemma.

Would May forgive me? I honestly think she believes in humanity way too much to be a resentful person... I know May is optimistic and forgiving - yet it doesn't mean that I should take advantage from that virtue. That wouldn't be fair; I can't abuse from her niceness. I refuse being like Harley!

"Even when you only have a single shot and you miss it? It is too late, isn't it..."

"Well..."

She was absorbed in her own private thoughts, standing up in silence for a long period before completing her honest answer.

"To understand, to forgive and to give yourself to someone... I think we often underestimate the power of these gestures..."

Mrs Ketchum walked to the window and opened the curtains, letting the breeze enter and dance in the living room.

"...Because there's time for change, always."

_Even though time waits for no one?_

"It is not a matter of comparison, a small meaningful change, even though nobody notices it, _is_ a meaningful change... It is not easy to challenge yourself to be a nicer and better person when you are aware of your flaws! That's why my family and my friends are both my greatest treasures and heroes. Do you understand that, Drew?"

"I..."

"Besides, I believe in what they call hope." She completed, shrugging her shoulders. "Magic happens when people try changing themselves, doesn't it?"

After the storm, clear blue skies. Mrs Ketchum's radiant words guided me to a sunny and safer place, making me want to believe she was right. Perhaps my quest was not over yet...

...Perhaps May was waiting for me?

My PokeNav started beeping.

* * *

"Excuse me..."

I picked up the call; the name on-screen and the hesitant silence on the other side of the phone kind of gave it away.

"Hello... Brianna?"

But I was wrong. It was Solidad - and she seemed to be quite worried about me.

"_Thank Arceus Brianna has your number! Drew, what's going on_?"

"I'm... At Pallet Town." I cringed at my answer. "What you're doing on Brianna's PokeNav?"

"_She's very concerned about you... __I used my PokeDex to call Professor Oak and he told me everything._" She sighed in worry, trying to not get herself mad as well. Adjusting her censoring voice to a calmer tone, she continued her sermon. "_Brianna has just dashed to the Pokemon Center, she left her PokeNav and her purse with me. Brianna wants to talk to you in a video call NOW, she refuses to believe you're okay... And of course something's wrong!"_

"Eh, I swear you I didn't write anything bad to Brianna..." I paused for a second then furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. "I have no idea why she's worried about me."

"_Cellphone contact, private messages, promises of hanging out with your coordinator fellows?... That's not a normal behavior for you_."

...Fair enough.

_"Either way... What are you trying to do?_"

"I..." Lowering my voice in tension, I stuttered in anxiety. "I-I need to see her..."

"_Huh?_"

"I need to go to Petalburg... I need to see May."

That's it.

Ash's Mom granted me a small hope, my mind and my heart are quieter now. I won't ignore that chance.

So this is my wish: no matter what, I am going to Petalburg right now.

I can't go back to the past. It is no use to cry over a stupid mistake when... She might be, still, waiting for me.

"Sol, I want to visit May at her house in Petalburg. I'm taking a break from Kanto's Circuit for a few days, don't wait for me."

After a long silence, I heard an affirmative and softer hum on the other side of the call.

She didn't question my answer. "_How can we help you?_"

[_Ring ring! __Ring ring_! Phone call, phone call!]

"Hang on a minute," I replied while checking the videophone's screen. "It must be Brianna."

"_It's okay, we are on our way to the Center. I meet you there in a few minutes, bye._"

Ending Solidad's call and answering Brianna's video call, I activated the camera and the phone. "Yes?"

"_Mr Drew, it's Brianna... Uh, is everything alright?_"

Brianna looked even more embarrassed, tense and shy than usual.

"I... I need to go back to Hoenn. I must go to Petalburg, now. I'm really sorry but I promise we will have that ice cream together when I come back."

"_What happened?_" She covered her mouth with one hand. "_Ms Solidad told me you were looking for May, is she in Petalburg City?_"

"Yeah." I scratched the back of my neck, feeling slightly awkward. "She's there."

"_Do you have a transfer machine somewhere around? If you're going back to Hoenn, we need to deliver some pokeballs to you. You only own a Flygon to fly with you, right?_"

"Huh?"

"_Yes!_" Brianna clenched her fists in determination, brushing away her anxiety for a moment. "_I'm sure Pidgeot and Vibrava can give you a helping hand! If you travel by sea, we got Lapras too. Let's wait for Ms Solidad and Mr Harley, then you're all set to go!_"

I watched the world fast-forwarding in front of my eyes.

Mrs Ketchum noticed I was almost lost in the middle of the ocean, confused yet amazed with the view. She smiled, without interrupting my introspection dive.

I stopped dreaming when Brianna's shy and curious voice woke me up.

"..._May is a special girl, isn't she?_"

* * *

I stared at the screen with a blank stare. Brianna was glaring at me with timid yet inquisitive eyes.

"_She's really special..._" She pouted, stubbornly fidgeting with her fingers. "_You really... Care about her._"

I felt my cheeks getting warmer. I just shrugged it off, grimacing a bit... "Uh, well... We all care, don't we?"

"_Yea, we do..._" She dodged her gaze from the screen, looking troubled. "_But I was very surprised to see that you REALLY care for her, Mr Drew!_"

I pondered in silence for a few seconds before answering that statement. To be honest, I was quite impressed to see Brianna being that direct about my personal life and I didn't know how to tell her the truth.

Sometimes the most honest and explicative replies are found using simple words, though.

"Well... I do. That's a big surprise for me too."

My answer made her almost fall from the Pokemon Center's phone cabin. Her pale face changed to a large range of colors in a very tight time frame - and I am sure she also mumbled something about me that I couldn't understand.

"Uh... Brianna, are you okay?"

"_May is a very, very lucky girl..._"

Brianna sighed discreetly to herself then hide her true feelings under a soft embarrassed laugh - a mix of disappointment, confusion and relief.

I noticed Brianna was holding her frustration the best she could. She was struggling against herself really hard, trying to not despair over her denied feelings. In respect to her effort, I pretended to not see the small tear drops rolling down her cheeks. She smiled back when I thanked her for her help.

"... Thank you, Bri."

I never knew what a pet name could do with an infatuated girl. After hearing the new nickname, she almost dropped the phone on the floor, covering her red cheeks with her hands.

Brianna returned to herself when a familiar hand tapped over her shoulder. She blushed even harder - but the person behind the screen seemingly calmed her down with few words and a golden card.

"_Oh. Mr Drew, please land in Slateport's ferry!_" Brianna showed the plastic card on the screen. "_Copy this number, you'll need this!_"

"Eh?" I raised an eyebrow and typed it down in my PokeNav. "What is that for?"

"_Someone here is from Slateport._" Solidad hinted, appearing behind Brianna. "_You can use this key number to unlock someone's bicycle and ride to Petalburg City_."

To my surprise, Harley also appeared on Brianna's video call, crossing his arms in annoyance and puffing in complaint like a Wigglytuff.

"_Pretty boy... Just for today, you may use my beautiful bike. Because I love Miss Tent but I hate you, do you hear me?.._."

Sol glared at me with a subtle smile on her lips. I sighed, following her silent orders while rolling out my eyes.

"Okay... Well, I appreciate that, Harley."

"_―REALLY?_" Harley's eyes suddenly got bigger and brighter. "_OH MY ARCEUS! I love you too, hon!_"

"... I don't love you, Harley... But whatever."

Brianna and Solidad laughed.

"I_ called Professor Oak and transferred few pokeballs to his lab_." Sol showed her PokeDex on the video screen. "_I'm sure you won't have problems dealing with Pidgeot or Lapras, they are the most obedient pokemon in my team_."

"_One last thing, Mr Drew. __Tell her we are praying,_" Brianna spoke with a gentler voice, holding her hands close to her chest. "_Ms Solidad, Mr Harley and me... We want her to get better as soon as possible!_"

"...I couldn't do that without you guys."

Solidad crossed her arms over her chest. Her mysterious smile got wider and motherly... Brianna giggled quietly and Harley stared at me with wiggling eyebrows.

Oh, not_ that._

"Wait, don't―"_  
_

"..._You've changed, Drew. I'm proud of you_."

_"I'm really happy for you, Mr Drew. I wish the best for the two of you!..."_

_"Awwww, our little Drewsie is not a kid anymore! Isn't that sweet, girls?"_

"I considered thanking you for all the help and support but I may have changed my mind now..."

* * *

Drew turned off the video call and crossed his arms, overwhelmed by the flood of information and emotions rushing inside his mind.

"You are surrounded by wonderful friends, Drew."

The boy turned his head to Ash's Mom. She was checking her garden from the window, watching the flowers being covered by the sun and the gentle breeze.

"I..." The green-haired coordinator unconsciously pouted a bit. "...I am a luck person, just that."

Delia smiled.

Drew grabbed a pokeball from his belt and summoned Roserade. The flower pokemon bowed politely, standing right by her master's feet.

"Rose!"

Watching the boy wear that solemn expression on his face, Roserade immediately knew what he wanted by calling her out. "Rosee?"

"Yes, please." Drew nodded. "Make the best ones, _Petal Dance_."

The charming pokemon spun elegantly on the floor, moving her slender arms in a hypnotic dance. Scarlet red flowers began to sprout from her hands - and, in a matter of seconds, a dashing bouquet of roses was born from them.

"Thank you very much for everything, Mrs Ketchum... You're awesome."

Coordinator and pokemon offered the beautiful flowers to Ash's Mom. Delia blinked, holding the dashing bouquet in her arms with astonishment.

"Thank you for the roses..." She touched one rose bud; its petals were silky and delicate. "Oh my, they are gorgeous."

"You deserve the best." The young teenager smiled. "You're truly amazing."

* * *

Professor Oak parked his bicycle nearby the Ketchum family's mailbox. He noticed the green-haired coordinator was fixing the last straps from a customized saddle on his pokemon's back.

"Hey, young man!" He grinned, admiring the shiny scales of the dragon-type pokemon. "Did you manage to find your answers?"

Drew flicked the tip of his hair and answered the researcher's question with a cheeky smirk.

"Yes, sir."

"Oh, that's good!" The pokemon researcher opened his bag and removed two pokeballs from the smaller pocket. "Here, Solidad asked me to give you these. Don't forget to inbox the extra pokemon, you can only carry six of them with you."

"Thank you, Professor. Don't worry, I'll."

Drew caressed Flygon's head and checked the map one last time - he was ready to depart and head to Slateport City.

"Thank you for the cookies."

Ash's Mom giggled. She walked back to the doorstep and held Mimey's hand.

"Hahaha, you don't need to thank me for that, Drew... Tell May she's always a very welcomed guest in my house."

The boy nodded, jumping on the back of his dragon pokemon.

"Oh, before I leave Pallet... Mrs Ketchum could you keep a secret for me?"

"Always, dear." She gently hugged the flowers tighter. "I'm all ears."

"I miss her so badly... That's not wrong, right?"

Delia smiled. Drew looked so fragile, yet so confident at the same time. That boy couldn't say May's name out loud but his answer was very fond and honest - it was a small veiled confession.

"Okay... Flygon, let's go!"

Obeying his trainer's intense command, the dragon pokemon charge and storm to the sky in full speed, making Professor Oak's bicycle jump in the air.

"Wooah!" Professor watched with surprised eyes the wind gust push him up and down. "What's that!"

He jumped and hugged his bike before it could get blown away by the wind.

Delia giggled, hiding behind the door. Mr Mime popped up behind her, protecting his sight with one hand and watching the Flygon disappear in the sky.

"That boy kind of reminds me so much of Misty," she whispered to herself, pleased and dreamily. "Ash surely have great friends."

"It's fascinating how young kids have the guts to chase their dreams so eagerly." Professor Oak scratched the back of his head, still slightly confused with what had just happened and with the mysterious comparison between the two teenagers. He sighed, checking his almost destroyed bike. "Though I have no idea what that boy has in common with Misty."

"Professor, she's a girl in l..." She smiled, looking at the dashing red roses in her arms. "Oh! Nevermind, I promised him I wouldn't tell that anyone, Professor."

"Wha?..." Professor Oak cocked his head to the side, crossed arms over his chest. "That doesn't make sense!"

"Well, guess I'm Ash's friends official secret keeper, haha..."

Delia laughed. Young love... So innocent, so sweet. She prayed to that honesty and determination always be there inside Ash and his friend's hearts.

"Cookies?" She opened the door to her friend. "I've just baked a couple of them, come in."

* * *

**A/N: **Hang on there... We are almost at the end of this story!

Thanks for the reviews and for the patience. You guys rock, hehe :D


	5. Chapter 5: Open doors

**[Don't you miss her?]**

* * *

**Chapter five - Open doors**

* * *

Time seemed to be passing at a very different speed. What was a single hour felt like a slow dragging day for Drew; then six hours were almost a whole eternity of waiting...

However, it wasn't a bad sensation at all.

For some odd reason, his mind was light and clear as the skies that divided Kanto and Hoenn. The teenager traveled across the continents without thinking too much - he spent the eternal hours watching the landscape in silence and listening to the wind blowing his hair away from his face...

...Somehow being surrounded by the color blue gave him tranquility and equilibrium.

It was definitely an uncommon moment - but his senses were really working more than his mind. His brain was resting from a stressful and panicking morning and his heart was aching and, at the same time, trying to calm his nerves down by dreaming about the moment he would finally meet his rival. He was worried about her health conditions yet the thought of finally seeing her again was... A great relief.

He missed her.

Everything worked as planned: Drew stopped the air trip twice, retreating the tired pokemon back to their pokeball and calling the next rested partner to the field. Checking the GPS map in his PokeNav once in a while, the boy smiled to himself. It was the first time in the day that nothing unexpected had happened: finally something was following the regular protocols. No surprises.

But routine wasn't the reason that made him so calm now.

* * *

The last part of the trip was the easiest and fastest one. Solidad's team doesn't disappoint anyone: Pidgeot was as obedient and efficient as Flygon and Lapras managed to swift calmly through the waves of Hoenn's warm seas. It was kind of sweet watching Lapras sing and have fun exploring a different ocean - who would say that docile creature was the same pokemon known as a scary powerhouse beast on stage...

Lapras are very rare pokemon and even more unusual in this continent - a pod of friendly Wailmer followed us in curiosity, helping us avoid wild and aggressive pokemon underwater.

After a tiring day flying and sailing from Kanto to Hoenn, I finally landed nearby the harbor and stretched my legs for a long and painful time.

This city makes me feel nostalgic. I'm not sure if May remembers some details of Slateport besides being a lively city and the host of Hoenn's Grand Festival... But I do remember the fancy hotel on a cliff nearby that beautiful beach and the special fireworks show.

Ironically or not, I think some stories in our life can be described as a full circle... This is the place where we first met. Beautifly and frisbees, berries, Torchic versus Roselia, Team Rocket.

My body was fully functional again - I walked to the bicycle parking zone and opened my PokeNav. I memorized Harley's password and started searching for his bicycle.

Obviously, Harley's bike was the most flamboyant and exotic one in that area. It was impossible to not stare at that... _Unique thing_.

I know Solidad confirmed it wasn't a lie but I couldn't avoid being surprised when Harley's code worked and I unlocked that _purple bike with green polka-dots and a Cacturne head basket_ (don't ask).

It was a strange sensation to be helped by that crazy man... I wonder if gestures like this is what make Sol and May trust him even though he's completely nuts.

Well, whatever._ I don't want to muse about that guy..._

I think there's some kind of automatic safety alert in Harley's security system - after few minutes I used the password, my PokeNav screen blinked with a new message.

* * *

_[Please take care of HariWheels with love! _

_You owe Harley a big favour now, sweet grasshead! _

_Don't you dare ignoring our call in a few hours or else you will feel our wrath_

S2 Kiss Kiss Kiss! S2_]_

* * *

_HariWh_—Uh... Whatever.

Route 110, 103, Oldale Town, Route 102. Petalburg City is located in southwestern Hoenn - not too far away from Slateport if you ride the Seaside Cycling Road.

It's been a while I don't travel alone by myself. Until Kanto's Grand Festival, that how I used to work; I'd travel across the continent together with Roselia, my pokemon team and no one else. After meeting May again in Johto, it became a normal habit traveling around the world with some other people...

_That's all her fault, isn't it?_ You know, it's a big irony to figure out how much you've changed not only now, but also in the past, because of one single person.

Cycling in the sunny roads of Seaside, I watched Taillow and Swellow chirping and singing on the top of the trees. It was perfect like a dream. That long run didn't tire me, I was too pleased with my ride in Hoenn to bother about physical stress. Signs of peace in my silly quest, finally.

I saw the city sign: _"Petalburg City: Where people mingle with nature"_. I parked the bicycle at the Pokemon Center and started exploring the streets.

Last time I traveled across Hoenn, I didn't stay too long in this city. To be fair, Petalburg is a quiet town with not many attractive places to those who aren't pokemon trainers competing for the League Circuit. I'm from LaRousse and I find curious how our cities are very eco-friendly but in completely different ways. My city is known for its top-tier urban technology and Petalburg... Is very simple. It is almost rural.

It is kind of funny because I can perfectly see May living here in her childhood days. She would often talk about her beloved hometown, telling people how much she loved it - yet her dream at ten years old was to leave that place and travel around the world, because Petalburg was cozy yet too small for her adventurous spirit. Like a baby pokemon that wants to evolve and see the world with its own eyes, May's dreams were too big to stay in her city.

It all makes sense now...

I recognized the famous Normal-type Gym very quickly - a classic, wealthy and really impressive house in the main center of the city. I wonder if May's family comes from Johto. That kind of antique architecture reminds me a lot the one I saw in Ecruteak...

I presumed that her house should be nearby Norman's Gym. I could be wrong but that was the most likely option.

Any traces of her presence made my steps get heavier. My throat got dry and my heart began to race in anxiety.

_Maybe somewhere in the—_

—Then I saw her.

* * *

May was sitting on the doorsteps of a large house, arms crossed over her legs. Under a generous spot of warm sunlight, she was fidgeting with some hair locks while resting with her eyes closed.

She was wearing a simple yellow summer dress and her hair was quite long, longer than I remembered it was. It looked very different than usual because she wasn't wearing her usual hairstyle neither one of her classic bandannas.

Her breathing was calm and slow... She looked so tiny and fragile.

"May..."

May was resting in the bottom of the sea of lost thoughts and my voice awakened her conscience. Swimming back to the surface of reality, she opened her eyes in surprise then raised her head to me.

Ocean eyes.

She didn't move a single muscle yet she didn't stop staring at me, speechless.

"Hey."

Step by step, I walked closer to her.

Time stopped for May.

I took that moment to watch her and comfort myself in her eyes. I wanted to pay attention to every little detail before she snapped out of her dream world.

I wanted to know her... I wanted to hear her voice and hold her close. I wanted to drown after her and bring her back to the land. I wanted to protect her from feeling sad and weak, I wanted to see her smiling again.

Were I allowed to do that?

"Surprised to see me?"

However, as soon as she emerged from her shock, the frozen seconds in deep thoughts fast forward in a very fast and abrupt reaction.

Without saying a word, she entered her house and slammed the door in front of me.

The crashing waves suddenly exploded on the rocks and returned to the ocean, leaving me behind on the shore.

Time waits for no one.

* * *

Rejection.

How can I explain that feeling?

It's not hatred... It's a heavy stone in my guts and a lingering taste of bitterness in my mouth.

I thought I would feel annoyed. Upset, completely mad at this rude and blunt reaction.

However... That made me feel sad and hurt.

That's how she felt all the times I turned my back to her when I was angry or annoyed.

Many times I turned my back at her with an uncomfortable silence in the air. I remember she never argued back when I decided to cut our discussion by acting cold and distant. I even shouted at her in rage once. _For Arceus's sake, I called her a wimp and lost my temper in front of her friends_... She never retreated her face every time I acted aggressive and ignored her feelings.

_"No need to worry", "it's okay", "I understand", "I'm sorry"_.

How could I be so stupid?

Those words... No, that _is_ something to worry about, it is _not_ okay and you shouldn't be sorry for that - I should be the guilty one here.

If people are nice and patient with you, it is disrespectful to abuse from their effort even though they let you do that with them. It is not funny and it should never be a lousy excuse for "it's just how rivals act around each other"...

I-I mean, I'm not blaming it on you. It's _not_ your fault, argh!... Damn, _why is that so complicated to explain?_

I understand you now, May.

I knocked on the door again, waiting patiently for an answer.

"May, listen to me."

No answer.

"May, I'm sorry..."

I deserved this.

"Can we talk for a moment, please?"

Steps. They're not coming closer to me, they're going far away from the door.

I refuse to let her go that easily. I know this isn't very polite-and-distant Drew, I know that not so long ago I would respect her choice and head back to Celadon...

"May, I won't leave until you tell me you don't want to see me... In my face."

...But I realized that I actually rather being slapped on the face than ignore my concern about her.

It's not about looking tough and perfect. It's not about losing or winning, either... I've learned my lesson.

Time doesn't stop. Choices build your future. Opportunities should never be wasted in vain.

And don't underestimate people..._ Never_ underestimate them.

* * *

Steps.

The door opened very slowly in a low and heavy sound.

"...Drew? Is that really you?"

May appeared in front of me then hid her timid face inside a heavy and large League jacket.

She was obviously wearing Norman's jacket not because of the sunny weather. Also, her question wasn't a mocking one - she was definitely surprised to see me there standing in front of her.

It was the first time in years since the last time we met and battled on stage. Actually, since we were far away from judges, crowd and spotlights, we allowed ourselves a mutual storm of strange glares and puzzled frowns. We were shocked with each other's presence.

To be honest, that stare battle wasn't what I would call a competition or a rivalry display... That was the only way we managed to communicate without collapsing in tension.

Spoken words in a moment like that were simply forbidden. She clutched her hands to her chest, looking sincerely worried about this situation.

Our bodies wanted to express all their mixed emotions - but shock locked our systems down, sewing mute lips together and creating a foggy thick cloud inside our minds. The world around our feet began to feel heavier and slower.

We were so close, yet so far away.

I wanted to yell and ask why she didn't tell anyone she was at home the whole time. I wanted to argue and point out how rude it was to slam the door on someone's face without prior warnings. I wanted to tell her how stupid it was to wear such big and hot jacket during the summer.

"...I'm sorry, Drew. I didn't mean to slam the door on your—"

I don't know why but only three angry words got out of my throat.

"..._I missed you!_"

* * *

"You..."

The young brunette repeated the words with a surprised look on her face.

"You_ missed me_?"

Drew blushed.

"Yes..." The confused boy tried to hide his face in embarrassment; however, he clenched his fists in determination and didn't let her sapphire eyes run away from him this time. "I did... A lot. Where were you all this time?"

"I-I..."

May dodged her eyes away from him, feeling a heavy weight on the bottom of her stomach.

"I had to take a small break— Oh, I'm so sorry!..."

The brunette girl bit her lips, now clearly worried about her friends. She frowned her eyebrows in a sad expression, trying to find the best words to explain herself.

"Did I worry you guys too much? I didn't mean to... Aw, Drew, I'm so sorry!..."

"You're a big airhead, aren't you?" Drew frowned for a moment, then sighed in distress. However, he didn't look angry - it was an honest display of relief. "Thank Arceus, you're alright... Gosh, we were damn worried about you!"

"I'm sorry!" She bowed her head, staring at her own shoes. "It's my fault..."

"What happened to your PokeNav?" Drew picked up his own device from his pocket. "You didn't answer any of our calls."

"It broke last time I fainted and fell on the ground," May looked away, slightly embarrassed. "It dropped from my bike and nobody found it after I was rescued. Dad bought me another one but the memory chip from my old PokeNav is gone. I lost all my friend's number."

"Rescue?" Drew blinked in surprise. "What rescue?..."

"I'm so sorry, I totally blew our promise to compete together and against each other in Sinnoh..." The clumsy girl put her hands on her face, trying to hide the pinkish tones in her warm cheeks. "Aww... Ugh, I wish I could have done something. I feel totally guilty for worrying you guys so much, I didn't want to be a burden!..."

May sniffed, trying to hold down her feelings. It was a bad attempt to control her emotions - she started sobbing, tears flowing nonstop from her big and expressive eyes.

* * *

I don't remember May being so fragile. Maybe she was always like that... And I didn't notice it.

I always saw her as a clumsy but very strong girl. Explosive, expressive and sweet...

Now I see how a tough and dedicated strength co-exists with vulnerability. I think that's what happens when you open your heart and fight life without hiding your emotions.

"W-Wait... May..."

It hurts. Unlocking your heart hurts and there's nothing that can be done about that... Why does she do that, then?

My stomach sank. Oh man, she's completely adorable. Is she really feeling bad for _that_?

"May..." I opened my bag and offered her a handkerchief. "Don't cry, please."

Instead of taking it from my hand, she ran to my arms and buried her face into my chest.

"D-Drew..."

"Yes?..."

"Waaaaah, I'm so sorry!..."

Although I was feeling guilty for being a heartless bastard, I wanted to protect her. She was warm, frail and beautiful... And a willpower I should never underestimate again.

"I'm not crying!..." Between sobs and muffled sounds, May tried to justify herself to me. "I'm just too confused..."

"It's okay now... It's alright, shhh..."

Just then another little voice came from inside the house.

_"Sweetie, who's there?"_

* * *

Jumping away from her rival, May swept the tears away from her eyes.

The green-haired coordinator touched her shoulder, trying to encourage his rival. She took a long breath and stopped sobbing - he retreated his hand as soon as she controlled her emotions.

"Come in, Mom is here." The shy girl coughed a bit then opened the door to her rival. "Let's sit on the couch, it's more comfortable there than standing up here outside. We gotta talk..."

"Yeah, we do." Sweating in anxiety, Drew removed his jacket. "We really gotta talk..."

The two coordinators entered the house and sat down on the sofa in silence.

Caroline watched May enter their house hidden inside one of Norman's large jacket, teary-eyed and slightly embarrassed.

She couldn't help but stiff a knowing giggle.

"Hi, Drew." May's Mom smiled softly, holding an empty bag in her arms. "How are you, dear?"

"I'm good... Nice to see you, Mrs Caroline."

Drew wanted to bury his head under the ground. To his relief, there were no mentions about their weird video conference call.

"Nice to see you too! That's a great reason for a small celebration, I bet you're hungry, aren't you?" She clasped her hands together then looked at her daughter. "Drew, please stay with us for dinner! May, I'm going to the market, alright?"

"Mom!..." The young brunette hid her face deeper inside the jacket. "Eh..."

"Well, make yourself at home, Drew." Caroline pretended to ignore her daughter's embarrassment and waved goodbye to the two teenagers. "Take care of my little May, will you?"

"T-Thank you," the other teenager answered, bowing politely while trying to sound relaxed. "Don't worry, I'll."

Before closing the door, she winked motherly to the green-haired boy.

"I had this feeling we would meet again sometime soon..."

Caroline gave Drew a warm and hopeful smile. Her eyes clearly showed how happy she was to have him at home.

Drew blushed, hiding the insecurity slip by coughing quietly, dodging his eyes to the floor.

"Uhhh..." May hesitated, hiding her face behind the heavy sleeves of her jacket. "I don't know what to say now."

* * *

Drew opened his mouth to say something but then he changed his idea - he kept to himself whatever went on his mind that moment and quietly heard everything she had to say first.

May noticed he was waiting for her. She sank her body in the sofa then took a long breath.

"I'm being serious when I'm saying I don't know what to say now..."

The green-haired coordinator shrugged lightly, watching his rival trying to control her mixed emotions. "Maybe you should start by the beginning. What happened last year?"

"I actually tried to get the boat to Sinnoh but I fainted before I could reach Slateport City..." The brunette lowered her head, looking at her own feet. "I could barely leave Petalburg because I kept tripping and panting all the time while I was on my bike. Drew... I got really sick, you know?"

"Remember when I was complaining how tired I was after Johto's Grand Festival? It got worse with time." May sighed, rubbing the corner of her eyes with her sleeve. "I thought I was just being fat and lazy as usual, it was probably nothing serious, so... Since I'm stupid and stubborn, instead of looking for help, I ignored my dizziness and kept forcing myself to reach Slateport, I didn't want to get late and lose the registering day."

"What happened to you?" Drew asked with a concerned voice, one hesitant hand almost touching her hair.

"It was so scary. Max started his journey last year and I was alone..." She lowered her head for a moment, holding her hands close to her chest. "I fainted and thank Arceus someone found me before something worse could happen."

The green-haired boy had no idea how big was the mysterious problem that made his rival stop leaving her house.

"I found out I got a small heart condition."

He gulped in horror. May frowned in answer, trying her best to calm down her shocked rival.

"Surprise!..." She forced playful but lame laugh. "Hahaha... That plus my silly habit of running and overextending my limits equals fainting on the road and missing the registration day for the Grand Festival. I'm not dead, please stop staring at me like this."

"How bad it is?..." The boy frowned, crossing his arms over his chest in tension. "Doesn't sound any good."

"Well..." May rubbed her temples, shaking her head slowly. "It doesn't have a cure... It sucks."

"See?" She forced a small smile, showing her sloppy clothes, the scattered pillows and blankets around the living room and the small colorful pill case on the coffee table. "Hehe, it's been a while I don't leave home. Intensive treatments are over but... Yeah, I'm glad I'm good now."

Silence.

Drew was lost in a mix of confusion, guilty and annoyance. He wanted to bury his head inside the ground, shake his rival's arms and yell at her denseness in reprehension, hold her close and never let her go... Everything at the same time.

May tilted her head to the side. Her friend was acting strange - he seemed to be struggling against himself.

"Drew?"

"You should have told m_—_" he mumbled the last word in an angry tone, quickly correcting himself with a louder voice. "_—us_. C'mon, at least Solidad or Brianna, I don't know!..."

"...I didn't want to be a burden to any of you. I... I don't want to face everybody, not now... Please, understand my side, Drew. I'm sorry."

"Don't you feel bad not telling anyone these things you've just told me?" His voice was tainted with a subtle bitterness. "That's really reckless!..."

"I was afr—"

May opened her mouth to answer Drew immediately but, oddly enough, she silenced herself.

After a couple of seconds thinking about her original reply, she changed her mind and also her answer.

"What would you do in my place? Would you call me? Would you ask me to wait for you and skip Sinnoh's Contest Circuit?" The brunette pouted. "...I-I know my place and I know what should I do, Drew. I can't be a wimp anymore!"

The real May reversed that question that the fiction May made Drew all the time inside his mind - his heart wrenched after hearing those words. The strength of real May's words were much more intense and devastating.

The silence was so intense that, for a long and uneasy minute, quiet moans and irregular breathing sounds were the loudest noises echoing inside the room.

"You were never a wimp..." Drew frowned, now being very careful with his words, thinking twice before speaking out loud his frustration. "You know that, right?"

"Well..." She closed her eyes, dodging them away from his grave stare. "I'm definitely not sure about this..."

_[Beep beep! Beep beep!]_

* * *

Drew's PokeNav started vibrating and ringing out loud, interrupting the grave tone of the conversation.

May raised her eyebrows in curiosity. "...Is that yours?"

She didn't mean to sound offensive - but it was really uncommon to hear her rival receiving any phone calls during the day. Drew was the type of coordinator who would make the call - he would never receive them. Drew never shared his number with anyone... Was that an urgent call?

_[Beep beep! Beep beep!]_

Drew quickly checked the screen to see who was trying to contact him.

_Should he answer it or should he ignore it?_

He rolled his eyes out, slapping his forehead and cursing under his breath in a strangled voice.

_[Beep beep! Beep beep!]_

"I hate being in debt with people..."

The green-haired coordinator sighed out loud. He flicked his hair from his sweaty and hot forehead.

"I'll regret it but... Promises are promises, pfff."

"Huh?" May tilted her head to the side, clearly confused. "What promise?"

He picked up the phone and handled it to his rival. She pressed the voice call button and was immediately showered with loud and worried cries.

"May, if this doesn't mean anything to you, I don't know what else I can say to convince that you're just worrying too much like you always do."

"Wha_—_" She frowned, getting more and more confused. "...Huh?"

_"Drewbie, where's my sweetheaaart? Stop playing the magical prince, bring my Miss Tent here, NOW!"_

* * *

"Harley?!" The coordinator girl clutched her hands tightly to the device. "Is that you?"

_"May!"_ Brianna's voice squealed. "_Oh Mew, you're there! Thank Arceus, you're alright!"_

Loud voices disputed for May's attention on the other side of the phone line. They apparently were arguing to see who was going to talk to her first - meanwhile, a third person picked up the call.

"Eh?" The brunette blinked in surprise. "Harley? Brianna?"

_"Yes, they are here too. I hope to see you again soon, May."_ Solidad's voice was soft and gentle. _"We miss you a lot."_

"Solidad..." She muttered with tears coming back to her eyes.

Drew couldn't help but contemplate his rival's excessively emotional reaction with a subtle grin on his lips.

"Silly..." He coughed, trying to sound as rigid and bland as possible. "You were_ always_ our burden."

"_Don't be so harsh, Mr Drew. Well, I guess you owe me mountains of ice cream now,_" Brianna giggled then added with a kind voice, "_would you like to have some too, May? Call me when you're free!" _

May gasped in confusion. "Eh?"

"_Drew suspended his ribbon quest for a while and he's on vacation right now,_" Solidad explained in a calm tone. "_Could you take care of him for us, please? I think he want to talk to you with certain urgency, he disappeared from Celadon today as fast as a teleporting Alakazam..._"

"D-Drew was in Celadon City today?..."

The brunette girl glared at her rival with disbelief looks.

"Drew, is that true?!"

He didn't look back, pretending to be paying attention to the portraits on the walls of her house.

"_Mr Drew really cares about you!_" Brianna sighed, sounding comtemplative and dreamy. "_You're so lucky, you have no idea..."_

_"Now let's stop bugging him for a couple of hours, shall we?" _The Top Coordinator suggested with a mildly playful voice to her friends. _"He deserves some privacy now. May, Drew... Take your time, alright?"_

_"You should stop protecting that cabbage kid,"_ Harley snarled in protest. _"What if he lied to us? Instead of helping us find May, he might have just asked for our help so he could confess his stupid teenager feelings and seduce our sweet Maybelle! What if they decide to compete in a different region than the three of us on purpose?"_

_"Whaat?" _Brianna shouted in shock._ "Wait, I HELPED Mr Drew confessing his love to May?!"_

"You three!" The green-haired coordinator broke the cold acting scene and stole the PokeNav from May's hand, blushing in bright red tones. "What the heck are you talking about?!"

_"Harley," _Solidad reprimanded her friend - yet she was obviously trying to hold her laughter._ "That's not our business."  
_

"Solidad..." Drew gnarled, glaring at his phone with a killing instinct. "We need to talk later."

"_I'll love hearing the news,_" she answered in a neutral tone. "_I hope you can offer me many details about it... __But again, it's not my business."_

"It is not, really! GOODBYE."

He closed the device in a harsh and violent slap.

"Geez, I am surrounded by crazy people..."

Talking to himself and mumbling in annoyance, Drew cursed the universe under his breath until he remembered May was right there by his side.

His rival stared at him, speechless.

"I can explain..."

Drew felt a sweat drop rolling from his forehead.

"I-I... Look, Petalburg is not that far away from Celadon. Besides, they were lying, I was in Pallet Town, not Celadon City_—_"

The brunette girl tried her best to keep a straight face - however, she couldn't hold herself and floods of laughter invaded the living room.

* * *

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"...What?" Drew arched his eyebrows in puzzlement. "Why are you..."

The green-haired coordinator wasn't sure if she was laughing at his despair or how radically the serious mood in the air had changed after that five-minute phone call. Either way, that made him turn off his PokeNav in case of any other embarrassing interruption - that call did help him break the ice but now they really needed some privacy to talk.

"I trust your words now, oh my!... Hahahaha!" May swept a tear away from her eye. "Hahaha, Drew!..."

"Hahahaha!" She heartily hid her face from her rival, trying to hold down her amusement. "Oh Mew, hahaha..."

"Then you're listening to me now?!..." He crossed his arms in a defensive way. "_Thank you,_ airhead."

"Nooo, that mean name again..." The girl slapped her forehead then placed her hands on her hips. "I thought you would stop doing that."

It was good to let their playful chemistry work like the old days. The two teenagers started arguing again - but this time in a way lighter and friendlier manner.

"Congratulations, you're going to be promoted to _'little monster'_ really soon." Drew smirked, staring at his rival with attentive eyes. "You're improving faster than I would ever imagined."

May stopped laughing, giggling quietly. She notice her rival was still a bit hurt about some issues between him and herself - so maybe that was the right moment to clear up some of his doubts.

She walked on the tip of her toes, staring at the ceiling. "Hey."

"Hm?" Drew's proud grin slowly shifted to a more neutral expression. "Yes?"

"I know you might not believe me, but..." The brunette girl tilted her head to the side. "Thank you for coming. I'm not mad at you."

Like the ocean that returns with gentle waves to the seashore, May eyes melted Drew's heart.

"Eh..."

The expression on his face got softer. It was impossible for him to not fall for her.

"...Don't restrain yourself. You've got dozen of reasons to be mad at me."

"But I have zillions of reason to be glad. This makes me really happy, I feel so special... So," she mused, trying to not reveal the over-excitement in her voice. "You said you missed me... You answered the phone call from our friends and I thought you would never, ever, do that. You crossed a whole continent to visit me... I'm shocked."

She stared at his enigmatic emerald eyes. "Shocked but it does feel really good. Thank you for caring... This is priceless, Drew. I feel great."

The green-haired coordinator was confused. How could that girl be so optimistic and sweet to him?

May was truly special... He was a very lucky boy.

"You felt alone and you distanced away from everybody... This is my fault," Drew opened his arms and whispered in a dying tone, trying to control his hesitant voice. "...I'm a monster."

The brunette coordinator sighed then gently hugged her rival, resting her head on his shoulder.

"...You're not a monster."

To her surprise, he didn't flinch or pushed her away. Instead of running from her arms, he hugged her back tightly.

It was weird. May had never imagined that someday she would be peacefully resting so close from Drew - it was like a distant fantasy, yet it couldn't feel any better or in a more appropriate place than his arms.

She smiled to herself, allowing herself to seize the moment.

"I mean... You may be a monster_—_ _only if I get promoted to little monster,_ deal?"

The two teenagers stood in that same place and position for a long time, listening to entangled breathing sounds and heartbeats.

"By the way... What about Kanto's GF?"

Drew was now sure that fragile hearts and cute words were dangerous - they deserved really good answers, or else...

"Kanto's GF is supposed to be happening in the next three months." Drew released May from his grip then shrugged. "But it's alright, I don't care."

"Today I officially skipped Celadon's Contest." Looking away, the prodigy boy declared the truth with a careless voice while crossing his arms. "I'll miss Pewter's and Cerulean's Contests very soon... Oh, also few others I don't remember the name. I don't care"

"No way you did that!" The brunette girl cringed in horror, covering her cheeks with her hands. "I-I'm sorry, it's my fault you're—"

"Stop."

Drew released his arms and touched May's hands.

"It is nobody's fault, this is my choice. I'm taking a break, _shameful phone call_, remember? I want to stay here with you."

"_O_-Oh..."

She slowly distanced away from him - yet he didn't release his hands from hers. Drew's arms were almost fully stretched now.

"I'm not dying or something like that..." May shook her head timidly, snuggling back closer to her rival and feeling his worried and warm breathing. "The doctors said now that I'm taking a couple of medicines and resting in a proper way_— _You don't need to wait for me! Someday I'll be back to Contests..."

"You promise me, then?"

He blushed, trying to sound as reassuring as possible. "...I miss you."

"Uh..." She felt the base of her neck burn in embarrassment. "I... I promise. But I can't promise you things won't change a bit, I can't do exhaustive physical stuff all the time anymore, I need to take few medicine pills daily and I need from time to time to check my health at the hospital."

"That's... I'm really sorry." Drew lowered his head, thoughtfully. "...I understand this is very complicated."

"Oh, don't be sorry... That's life." She sighed softly, looking directly at his worried face. "I need to be glad that I am not feeling any pain and everything else is good. Overall, that's a good life."

"But... I'm not ready yet for this. I don't want to travel with you guys if that means I'll slow down everybody," the brunette coordinator murmured in a disappointing tone. "Please, don't stop competing because of me, I don't want to be a burden."

"I've told you already." Drew sighed. "You are our burden, always."

Perhaps not everybody's burden - however he was definitely sure she would always be his responsibility.

"I know, I know..." May muttered, scratching the back of her hot neck. "But still_—_"

"Let's travel," speaking in a reassuring voice, the boy quickly added. "Forget the Grand Festival. You don't need to rush or stress yourself with Contests. Besides being rivals, I think we might be... Friends, aren't we?"

"We... We are friends."

May suddenly became very reticent. For a couple of seconds, she didn't say any other words, lips repeating in silence Drew's last words as if they were going to be forgotten.

"We..." She pouted, blushing in reddish tones and sinking her head again inside the jacket. "I mean, I want us to be friends if you don't mind."

The green-haired Top Coordinator smirked. "_If I don't mind?_"

"Yes..." May nodded, still hiding her face in embarrassment. "Then that's what I want."

"Well then, I don't want to think about Contests and you don't want to compete for now, right?" The boy tried to reason with his rival, being honestly interested on her reaction to his plan. "No intensive ribbon hunting, no long exhausting walks in the deepest woods to cross the road between cities, no stress. Let's just have some fun, have some fancy food, take our pokemon to the beach, how about that?"

"I want... I want to know you."

After hearing his rival's timid words, Drew blinked, slightly puzzled. "Oh?"

May opened the jacket, trying to face her awkwardness.

"I want to have fun, eat good stuff, and... I want to know you, Drew."

He caressed her long hair in a very loving way.

"Well," The brunette girl muttered, feeling his tender and comforting touch. She slowly shifted her gaze from his face to the floor, staring attentively at her own slippers, sheepishly smile on her lips. "That's not a dream... Neither pity... _Is it_?"

He hit her forehead with gentle and playful tap.

"_Little monster_."

May giggled, heartbeats pulsing faster and louder.

"Hehe, I had to ask it..." Her smile got wider. "Better ask than feel sorry?"

"C'mon, I skipped a whole continent just to see you..." Drew replied while flicking the tip of his rebel hair. "You surprised me—"

The teenager girl gave him with a caring and longing look; that was enough to make him melt again.

"—You _surprise_ me all the time," Drew corrected himself, in a sweeter voice. "...It's good to see you again."

May was about to joke about it lightly but then she felt his warm and soft lips touch her forehead.

He closed his eyes then whispered few cryptic words.

"_Be still, my heart._"

* * *

His heart?

She knew her damaged heart was "special", it was broken, different.

However, at that moment, it was not just special... It was _really_ special. Still broken, different from everybody else.

But it didn't mater if her heart was unique or not; for the first time, she had finally found the door to Drew's mysterious secret. The path to his inhibited heart was unlocked.

It was fragile, insecure and beautiful... Different from everybody else too.

Imperfect, but just perfect for her.

Tracing a path from his lips to his chest with her fingertips, May closed her eyes and smiled.

* * *

**..**

**A/N: **Thank you for reading [Don't you miss her?]. It was a fun experience, I want to write another 1st person POV story again someday :)

I am burning in fever right now (flu season ftl) but I just had to finish this or else my conscience would shot me down D: It was really bugging me how this story was missing the last chapter. Next week I'll check if I wrote any absurdities lol... Going to hit bed now, goodnight~

Oh, I won't put this story as [completed], at least not yet... There's a really short epilogue, I'll upload as soon as I finish some irl emergencies.


	6. Epilogue

**[Don't you miss her?]**

* * *

Yes...

I missed her.

Damn, I missed her a lot. It's so relieving being able to say that out loud, without feeling a huge pressure on my chest...

That incredibly cute smile, for me and nobody else... Her constant need for attention, support and affection - and how she answers that care with love. Hands down, these are worth the effort every single time. It is impossible to not fall for her charms.

Yeah, this might sound too clingy, insecure and possessive but... Well, being there without any class and style makes her happy.

It's a fair trade,_ I think I can live with that._

* * *

_"Drew, what are you doing?"_

* * *

I would never believe that hearing May laugh at my hopeless romantic side would be so much painless... And good.

It requires lots of guts to have the courage to make the first step... But once you understand how it goes, opening up is much easier than it seems to be.

It is safe to open your heart and let her come in - she knows how to deal with delicate things. She knows how to make herself at home and make it a warm and exciting visit.

May knows how to love and take care of the others.

* * *

_"Shhhh. I'm trying to find new spots to drop secret kisses. Let me try behind your left ear now."_

_"Oh... Hahaha, that tickles! Hahahaha, stop, no—Ahahahahah!"_

* * *

Mrs Caroline says that love is the best medicine for a fragile heart... I see her point. A good environment is the best place to grow up good thoughts, happiness generates more happiness. May looks great, she's smiling all the time - our secret therapy _is working pretty well_.

Just don't say a word to Mr Norman, please. He's quite not too pleased with the idea of an alternative treatment..._ Someone is jealous, heh_.

* * *

_"You know... It's been a lot of fun staying here with you, Drew. I never imagined I would have so much fun staying at home, haha."_

_"Then you must come to LaRousse with me next year... You haven't had the best holiday of your life yet."_

* * *

I decided to skip my Kanto trophy this year and spend some time with May. Yesterday we went to Slateport with her family and we watched the firework festival... Next week, we will watch the PokéRinger competition in Crossgate Town, then in the next day we will visit her friend Kelly in Lilycover City. Busy but fun schedule, huh?

Next semester May's willing to try traveling together with me and apply for Hoenn's Contest Circuit... Solidad and the others cannot wait to compete against us again. I heard they are all coming to this continent in the next season.

But all I want now... I just want to enjoy these peaceful days as much as we can. No nosy coordinators stalking our intimate moments.

(Well, I still prize some privacy...)

* * *

_[Beep beep! Beep beep! Beep beep!]_

_"It's for you."_

_"Eh? How do you know—"_

_"It's Harley. I'm sure it's not for me, it's for you."_

* * *

We should be okay... We are all doing our best.

Alright, now I must admit... There's something more rewarding than fame and popularity.

* * *

_"May..."_

_"Hm? What's wrong?"_

_"I missed you. I'm happy to be here."_

* * *

For now, I just want to be recognized— I just want May to recognize me as someone truly worth of her love. I want to know her friends and family better, I want to discover her small quirks and let her know my little secrets.

I want to know her.

Time waits for no one... I don't want to lose my chance to conquer and deserve her heart.

* * *

_"Hey..."_

_"Yes?"_

_"You've changed a lot, Drew."_

_"Heh... It's kind of your fault, I guess."_

_"...Is that an attempt to thank me?"_

* * *

It's all fine now.


End file.
